Miko
by garden galaxy
Summary: The Uchiha. Clan full of egomaniacs and Stick-in-the-muds? Or a clan full of soulful artists and cat lovers? She would see to the latter. The ultimate Uchiha Massacre fix-it fic. Manipulative!OC!(first story)
1. Chapter 1

Despite above average intelligence and a perfectly healthy body, accidents do happen. More specifically the car related type. And while tragic, it was completely unordinary how 16 year old Emilia died. She told herself while she was still alive and the paramedics hovered frantically, to expect a lot and nothing when she passed, so she wouldn't be caught off guard when transported to one of the seven rings of hell or something. But somehow, she was still surprised. In this place(which was slowly getting smaller) she wasn't alone.

At first, thinking it was a demon she kicked at her surroundings, trying to split(Because even though she died she still had survival instincts-go figure). But the thing seemed to not want to hurt her. It didn't seem to want anything in fact. Gently as she could, she reached out and grabbed a hand.

A _hand._

 _ **Well then.**_

Her brain jump started and she realized this entire setup was a lot like an unborn baby. (The hand grabbed back!)

She was used to sharing a birthday. Being a twin was nothing new to her. She was one in her past life. Speaking of which, hats off to the Hindu's(The _Hindu's-get it right, people!)_ for correctly speculating reincarnation.

But still, this brought up an entire new slew of questions.

Maybe she was still alive and in a coma of sorts? Maybe she was in a drug induced hallucination from some of the painkillers she was pumped with?

( _or maybe she was really dead and-)_

Quickly stomping that thought down to oblivion, she pondered her options.

She could freak out. This wouldn't work, as she had done that previously and absolutely nothing happened. It would just waste energy.

Or she could wait it out and roll with the punches. This idea was a lot more appealing, as she had always been a relaxed, casual, sort of person. Nothing really fazed her and she never saw the reason to get worked up over something unless it was dire.

Choosing option two, she relaxed and ignored the (her twins?) shifting and the shrinking space.

Well, that is, until she couldn't.

Sudden, _soul crushing,_ squeezing abruptly awoke her from her half lucid state. If she could have screamed, she would have.

She was aware of her body only when it was being crushed. Again. A blast of icy air smacked her in the face like a frozen steak, along with frantic shouting voices(!).

Normally, this wouldn't bother her, as she had cut her teeth on the Chicago lakefront and lived with quite a hectic family.

But then again, _nothing about this was normal. S_ o excuse the fuck outta her if she wailed like the baby she probably was.

So that's how Emilia was reborn, wailing like a firetruck and just as red, caught in the arms of a medic. Her twin followed not far behind her and she was happy to note they were screaming loud enough raise the dead.

(See what she did there? Cause she died-)

Wrapped up like a Christmas present, she was presented to only what she could assume to be her mother. Something was just familiar about the woman. She couldn't see very well, or feel for that matter, or hear now that she thought about it, but she'd be a fool to miss the powerful emotions rolling through the room.

Or the emotions rolling through her. She had taken A.P psychology and knew the signs. There was no way this was just a dream. Lucid perhaps? She was a very accepting person, but there was only so much she could take in one day.

And with that, she passed out on her new mothers chest.

* * *

 **Wow, this has been a ride to write. This is an edit, something I feel the need to tell new readers now that the stories over.**

 **Yes, this is an fix it fic.**

 **But it's also a brain dump. This is filled with head cannons, social issues, and tangible progress. This story is an idea, the idea that progress is possible. This is different from most fix-it fic's due to it being told from Miko's perspective. Miko is a flawed character as I will explain in chapter 27 but for now that's not what I wanted to say.**

 **This will be different.**

 **I can prove it.**

 **It will be different because of _how_ She tries to fix it. Instead of training to be super strong, or fighting head on with Danzo and root, she gets other people to do the work for her. She never directly gets her hands dirty. She manipulates people to become closer and doesn't waste her time trying to kill Danzo. She makes her stand from a human perspective and that makes all the difference.**

 **But I won't spoil anymore.**

 **As my first ever fanfiction I could have not asked for a better reception and for that I thank you all. This story has many** **grammar and writing errors(cringey)-and I have chosen to leave it that way to keep this fic how I originally had it. I hope that doesn't stop you from enjoying it and the many themes running through it.**

 **Each chapter is a short snippet updating you on Miko's progress, and each chapter has something special. There are some truly ingenious moments here that will leave you awed, moments of triumph that'll have you grinning, and moments where you'll be on the edge of your seat.**

 **Sit back,**

 **Relax,**

 **And enjoy the ride.**


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm going to start this off by saying this is a test run. I have a lot of ideas for this story, and since it's my first one i'll be trying out new things and seeing how it goes. Be warned, if I get that far, this story will be a lot different than most.**

* * *

It was exhausting. You may think being a baby is all fun and games, but it felt like her soul was being sucked out of her every time she tried to move. Thankfully, the giants did all that for her.

She had met quite a lot of new people, now that she thought about it, but three seemed to be the most consistent. Her new mother, a man she could only assume to be her father, and a boy not much older than her and her twin.

She personally liked mom the best. She was gentle and warm, with beautiful silk hair and held her and her twin with much care. She honestly couldn't tell much more, as she had terrible vision. Guess some things never change. The boy who was probably her older brother was a close second though. He would watch and help when they were being taken care of, and sneaked into their room and watched her and her twin sleep.

That would be creepy in any other circumstance but whatever.

She yawned again. She and her twin had been fed and watered in all that and placed down in the same crib. She had no problems with this, as in her past life she had slept with anime body pillows and two pet cats. She wasn't afraid to crack out a hug or two either.

Actually she lied, she did have a problem-a month old baby has extremely limited mobility. The most she could do was scoot over and clutch the front of his onesie. Though she did admit it was freaking adorable when he did the same.

Getting comfy, she started her ritual before sleep activity: Thinking.

Don't get her wrong, she was happy she was given a second chance, but everything was just so... different. From what she could tell(between sleeping and the impending existential crisis) the people spoke an entirely different language than English. Being a bit of an anime nerd in her past life, this didn't bother her much. While it wasn't Japanese, it was something close to it and she could work with that. Plus she had plenty of time, being a baby in all

And get this; there was something _everywhere._ A wacky sort of energy like the force in star wars. This hadn't been a thing back then so she was acutely aware of it.

Her new father's energy was stoic and cold but steady. Her mothers was calm like a moonlight pond but it had a fire hidden in the middle of it. Her older brothers was a fire plain and simple. It was fierce but meritoriously controlled. It could warm and protect you or burn you.

But what caught her attention the most was her baby brothers. Unlike the three other members of her family who's signature seemed to mature with them, his was like a blank sheet of paper, eager to be drawn and written on. There was a certain innocence and purity that made his absolutely endearing.

Briefly she wondered what hers would be like, since she already had a developed personality.

Shifting slightly in the red blanket she blearily looked at her rather adorable twin(and if she was as cute as that, more power to her) who's features were gently caressed by the moonlight streaming through the assumed window. Honestly, he looked like a cherub. A bit of drool fell on the top of his onesie by her fist and his eyelashes fluttered along with the butterflies he was probably dreaming about.

And while that was nice in all, she was tuckered out. So without further ado, she closed her eyes and dreamed.

* * *

She woke up to the sound of her brother crying. It wasn't outright wailing yet but it would be soon. She took a delicate sniff. _Ah._ Shuddering, she realized it'd be quite awhile before she could use the bathroom by herself again. Oh well.

Expecting her new mother to change their diapers, she was surprised when much tinnier hands airlifted him away and out of range of her terrible baby vision. She immediately ceased whimpering (she had dignity!). She gawked into space and was also lifted up and out of the crib and changed. Damn, this older brother was smart.

Gentle hands closed her diaper and gingerly cradled her against a chest. Lips rested against her forehead, and her head was supported by his shoulder.

Wow, this was actually extremely comfortable.

She decided to voice her happiness and test the waters by babbling. She felt the lips smile on her forehead and she was lowered into the crib with her twin.

Tomorrow, she decided she would find out what her new families names were. She couldn't call her new dad frumpy forever, after all.


	3. Chapter 3

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Nothing could describe the moment of absolute excitement when she realized their mother was taking them outside. After being cooped up and then wrapped in a tight blanket, she was _so_ ready to feel fresh air.

Her twin seemed to agree, if the happy squealing was anything to go by. Mentally shrugging and going 'what the heck' she readily joined in on creating a baby chorus. Soft tinkling laughter grabbed her attention and she watched as her new mom opened the door, leaving her to hang in her sling before supporting her again.

The first thought that struck her was that it was bright. Like, Jesus grinning bright.

The second was that it was a hub of activity. While she couldn't see very well with her baby eyes, the energy was absolutely everywhere. It swirled and danced, vaguely taking the shape of people and trees. Voices speaking the foreign language rang out-high and low, laughing and shouting.

She was enthralled.

She continued to watch her mother as she interacted with all the dark haired and eyed people. She was especially captivated to see a ton of Pokemon ball looking things practically on everything.

An old man and an old woman who smelled like bread looked over her and cooed. Cool beans. Various other people stopped and (presumably) said hello, while they powered on through until they were out of the Pokemon district and on a mostly deserted street.

When she says mostly deserted, she means there were still people on the street. More specifically, the silhouette of a woman with the longest, reddest hair she'd ever seen. She took the time to acknowledge something was familiar about this woman.

But what captivated her most about this woman was her energy. It was layered, and not in the way others were personality wise, but like she had different energies within her.

First, there was her energy. It was fierce, wild, and burning with passion. The second was...

Well, it was like her twins in the fact it was tiny and unaware. It was also right behind here approaching rounded stomach. With dawning awareness, she realized this lady was pregnant. It was actually an incredibly humbling feeling, seeing life before it technically existed.

Sudden, terrible energy lashed out at exactly her navel. It was harsh, like a heatstroke. She turned her head and whimpered into her mothers chest.

The red haired woman was stunningly beautiful up close. She had long red haired that flowed like a well written poem, and gray eyes like clouds at dusk. (Whoops, her inner poet is showing.)

Now that she was so close, the evil energy was canceled out by her mothers, thank god. She stopped whimpering. The woman, however, was just getting started, cooing over them. That made sense, and she was going to be a mother soon by the looks of it, and she was a 100% sure they were adorable.

So she let her poke her cheek and stared contently until she said something that turning her world upside down.

She said Sasuke.

And suddenly, clues she had been suppressing came crashing down on her.

The Pokemon looking things, the language, her family, the older brother whom she had dubbed 'ichy', the energ- _chakra._

Briefly she considered the coma idea, cause there was no way she had been reborn in Naruto. Somebody pinch her!

Just then the lady- _Kushina,_ poked her again. With her worst fears confirmed, her mind spun into action.

She was Miko Uchiha, apparently Sasuke's twin( _andohgodwhatifshe'saboy!)_ and she was not supposed to exist.

With a sob she realized she was not supposed to be here. In canon, Sasuke had no twin.

Accidents do happen, indeed.

* * *

 **Here's the third chapter! Now that she realizes where she is, I can start to forward the plot. See you!**


	4. Chapter 4

Despite her insane absentmindedness, she was not a dumbass. In fact, if she had to say who she was like the most out of all the Naruto cast, it would probably be Shikamaru. She was famous among friends and peers in school for daydreaming and putting minimal effort into projects and homework, but always coming away with A's,B's, and GPA intact. The secret to her success?

She was observant.

And she knew how to connect the dots.

So with a pregnant Kushina- _the kyubbi container_ \- and her being a month and a half baby, she connected the dots.

A. The 9 tails was going to be released within a month.

B. Kushina, Minato, and countless others would die.

C. The attack was the beginning of the end for the Uchiha.

Blame it on her baby body or the huge real life plot twist, she cried. Mikoto wasn't too worried about her crying as she was a baby, and that was fine. She was worried enough for the both of them.

They walked back into the Uchiha district and came home to Fugaku and Itachi. The latter visibly (for a ninja child) brightened when he saw them. She and Sasuke were sat in their baby seats and fed milk from a bottle while they talked in the language she had yet to understand.

While she was being fed she just noped out of it. There was literally nothing she could do to prevent the attack and with that mental declaration, she entered a dream like state.

* * *

She blinked groggily at the feeling of her baby body being handed from larger arms to much smaller ones. Soft murmuring captured her attention, and a steady heartbeat almost lulled her back to sleep. Over the past couple weeks she had basically given up and slept peacefully while she still could. The time passed faster than she could have ever imagined and a sense of foreboding blanketed her.

Looking around she instinctively knew it was Itachi carrying her and Sasuke. She was surprised by her rapid improvement in vision. It was already better than it was in her past life, and with her being an Uchiha it would only get better.

But it still wasn't very good. So reaching out and screwing up her pudgy face, she sensed the house was empty, and them walking to the back porch that was bathe by moonlight.

She sensed something else.

Her range was shoddy at best, but the air was charged and ready to be set. Like a match ready to fall in a bonfire covered in gasoline. It was stifling to her baby lungs.

Sasuke started crying, and so did she. She cried for the thousands she knew would die; she cried for her new family and what this would mean for them.

Itachi leaned over and spoke gently to her and Sasuke, but all she could hear was the blood roaring in her ears.

She became deathly silent.

And then there was a roaring figure blocking out the moonlight.

Itachi immediately jumped up, the tense atmosphere breaking like a glass ceiling and falling down around them in sharp shards, almost as piercing as Sasuke's cries. They ran, following a stream of people into the shelters built for previous wars. The entire time the nine tails raging in the background, shoulders scraping the moon.

Her and Sasuke were bounced in Itachi's arms. He had met up with another girl with a tiny mole on her cheek- Izumi? And they ran together.

She would never forget this.

She was an accident here, but this attack was not.

She knew Itachi was worried, and she had fallen as silent as the flower beds Mikoto took care of. She couldn't do anything though. The crushing weight of the monster chakra and of her own powerlessness was bearing down on her. The death of so many people was like candles being violently blown out to her senses.

She would never forget this.

The Kyubbi attack changed everything. It signed off on the Uchiha clans damnation by them taking the blame. And it partially was their fault, with Obito going off the deep end with the loss of Rin. The bouncing abruptly stopped and they were hiding now in a shelter, the huddled masses whispering and babies whimpering and wailing. Except for her. She thought, and she felt the monstrous chakra outside flicker, that Minato was already fighting his former student and Naruto would soon be an orphan.

And in a couple years, so would they. If she even survives the massacre that is.

She wailed. She did not accept that. She wouldn't just need to pull strings, she would need to make them. Not a second was to be wasted, as she was brought here for a reason and she wouldn't just go with the flow, she would ride it like a surfer and send it crashing over fate. Fuck Tobirama, they could change!

The massacre would not happen;she would die trying to stop it.

Her wails set the others off, the other small children and babies picking up the call and echoing off the shelter walls. The difference, however, was they cried out in fear and uncertainty.

Her wails weren't wails so much as they were a battle cry.


	5. Chapter 5

Like so many times before, she laid in the basket in a corner of the living room next to Sasuke. It had been a couple months since the attack and now was early spring. She guess they were about nine to eleven months now and while she didn't' know much about baby development, never having a younger sibling herself, she still thought it was about damn time for her to start walking.

She promised herself to not actually do any landmark achievements until Sasuke himself had-like walking or talking- but sitting here was making her antsy.

How was she supposed to save everyone if she couldn't walk!?

So she compromised.

She decided, that today this early spring morning, she would crawl right out of this basket and up to her dad. Spring signified the birth of new things, and today it would symbolize the birth of her plots. Being clan head, Fugaku held tremendous sway over the Clan and the village as a whole. He was (if her memory served her correctly) even considered a candidate for the fourth hokage. While there was a rift between the clan and village now, she was sure there was still some loyalty left.

Danzo, of course, screwed it all up in the first place by holding the clan back when the Fox attacked, leading to resentment. If she could change her father and wrap him around her cute chubby baby fingers, she could hold his ear without him even knowing. The best way to do this was to stand out and impress him.

There was only one problem with that.

Sasuke was clinging to her like a grape vine.

Normally she wouldn't mind, as she'd cling back just as enthusiastically. He was also really warm and was honestly her sunshine. She could one hundred percent understand why Itachi loved him so much, as she felt like her heart was melting with how much she adored the marshmallow. Seriously though, how did babies get all those flabby bits?

Now that she thought about it, (again) It didn't even matter really what she did. Itachi's shadow, while completely unintentional on his part, would cover anything she or Sasuke did and render it unimpressive. So if she got up and broke into pirouettes she doubt they'd bat an eye. She should just stay here in the warm blankets with her personal heater...

She snapped her eyes open, not even realizing they were closed in the first place, and began her wiggling anew, much to Sasukes annoyance. She struggled out of the downy yellow blankets and with a huff or triumphant, plopped down on the floor. Success!

Sasuke started to sniffle. Panicking, she tried to climb back into the crib. If he cried and somebody came in, the surprise would be ruined. Her chubby fingers were too weak as she futilely tried to lift herself back into the basket and all the while his little huffs became louder.

As a last ditch attempt, she started humming a half forgotten tune from her past life.

As if pressing a magical button, he immediately stopped all action, and blinked owlishly at her, mystified.

She squealed mentally at how cute he looked, before the shocking realization settled in, that in his short life, he had probably never heard music before. As a former choir student, that was unacceptable and she vowed to teach him the ins and outs of it.

Even though it was a strain she continued humming until his eyes fluttered back to sleep. Slowly and with much effort she shuffled up and the action took her breath and the tune away.

So caught up in herself, she didn't notice Sasuke moving until he plonked down right besides her and looked expectantly. She gaped in shock, before smiling and letting out a little happy baby giggle. Deviously, she thought, she couldn't beat Itachi by herself, but if she and Sasuke paired together...

She slowly got up on all fours and started crawling away. She heard the shuffling of his matching blue onesie and smiled. Everything was going perfectly.

Until her arms gave way and she went down like the titanic. As she oomph-ed, she heard an identical one behind her. They weren't even halfway across the room!

Sitting on her backside she frowned and looked at Sasuke, who had rolled over onto his back and was staring at the ceiling fan.

 _Light bulb._

She started humming again, a faster paced tune to get into the mood and Sasuke rolled over to her and gave her a clumsy hug-apparently missing her. She hugged back, then tightened her grip and maneuvered them both into crawling position.

He looked confused before an excited looked crossed his adorable face. And with their cloth covered hinnies, shoulders, and cheeks squashed together, they crawled forward.

Teamwork!

This would be even more impressive! It showed they were able to coordinate and work as a pair. Plus, she was sure they were adorable. From now on, she declared them partners-in-crime!

They slowly made their way across the room, before slowly turning in the open door down the hall, where a cracked door shined light. They had another falling out halfway down the hallway (where she sensed dad and Itachi to be) And burst into giggles along with Sasuke as they got up again. The faint talking coming from the rectangle of light stopped abruptly.

Huffing and puffing, they squeezed their way into the room.

Itachi and Fugaku were staring at them in shock and soft adoration. On the latter's part that is. Because he wanted too, they crawled over to Itachi, who was smiling softly at them. She didn't mind, as long as dad was watching. They grabbed at his pants, both of them having recovered from their surprise. Her new dad (weird) said some parting words before getting up to leave.

But he barely saw anything!

Like a bolt from the blue, an idea hit her.

"To-Tou tou" She garbled.

Said man froze in shock, before turning to look at her. He slowly approached and lifted her from Itachi's and Sasuke's sides. He brought her up to eye level and regarded her critically before giving a small, hesitant, smile.

 _Success._


	6. Chapter 6

It had been a few days since the whole crawling episode and Sasuke and her were put to bed in their shared crib. She cooed in triumph as she remembered the aftermath. Fugaku was defiantly happy with her and Sasukes progress.

And thats what mattered to her most. If he had his fathers acknowledgement from the very beginning, he wouldn't be as isolated from the Uchiha, and she could use him to maybe sway some of the stiffer elders. But she had to be careful, or else Sasuke could be the one who's mind was changed. In order to prevent that, she needed to establish a firm connection between her and Sasuke.

She baby smirked. She knew how.

She coughed a little, garnering Sasuke's attention. He blinked and yawned, looking at her curiously. Licking her lips, she, for the first time in a lifetime, spoke English.

She didn't want to forget.

" _Emilia."_

It was slow, and strained, and she was sure she forgot one of the i's.

" _E-m-i-l-i-a"_ There. That was better.

Sasukes was now looking over, having flipped onto his belly, in total fascination. He had never eard words spoken like this before. Looking him in the eyes, she started babbling the alphabet.

" _E"_ She spoke as clearly as she could.

" _e-ey"_ He parroted.

They went all the way down the line, with her repeating specific letters multiple times.

Quite frankly, she was glad their parents had put them to bed early and left Itachi to watch them as they went out, or she wouldn't have been able to do this. The kid knew what he was doing and even though they could eat solid foods, perhaps feeding them dango wasn't the best idea. But now they were awake and she and Sasuke would have a secret language!

It was now more than ever she realized Sasukes smarts. Sure he was no Itachi (no one was) but he picked up on the letters and pronunciations insanely quickly. Then again, now was around the time babies were supposed to talk anyway.

It was their third day in, and she had been careful enough so that anything learned could be mistaken for baby babble. He had learned all the letters needed to say his first word.

Sasuke swallowed loudly, wetting his lips. Before opening his mouth and speaking his first word;

" _Emilia."_

She let out a soft squeal, and gave him a sloppy baby kiss on the cheek.

He was exhausted after that, and rightfully fell asleep, breathing heavily against her shoulder.

She stopped smiling. She started to cry.

Softly of course, didn't want to wake Sasuke up. But having Sasuke's first word be her name-old name was a harsh reminder. She was so grateful she got a second chance-even if she didn't do anything to deserve it. It's just that she had a good life, and didn't realize what she had until it was gone. She would not make the same mistake here.

It may have been his first word, but it would be the last time she ever heard it.

Her tiny body was shaking slightly with emotion, like the room was cold. So caught up in trying not to sob, she didn't noticed the tiny hands reaching up to her until she was blinking in shock when baby hands(not hers) were grabbing at her cheeks, smearing the tears in to the pillow.

Sasuke leaned over, using those new crawling skills, and kissed her forehead and hugged her.

"M-mo"? He looked at her with his own concern glittering in his eyes.

She smiled, touched by his concern. He really was a smart cookie if he could tell emotional stress from this age. He even made a baby noise that sounded like the new language.

"MmKO!" He garbled more urgently this time.

She looked at him with shock and excitement. Was Sasuke about to say his first official word!?

Delighted at her obvious attention now, he gave her a gummy grin with a few teeth and crowed;

"Mmiko!"

Miko. Her- he said her name.

She couldn't help it. Soft wails rise from her sore throat, and Sasuke soon followed. All she wished to do was tell him how grateful she was for this, but couldn't find the words.

Emilia _was_ her name; Miko _is_ her name.


	7. Chapter 7

Miko was annoyed.

So was Fuguku.

The clan elders had arranged a meeting to discuss whatever. She still didn't get a lot, not that she wasn't getting there though. Full on immersion and a growing baby brain did wonders.

However, these clan elders did not.

They were from a time when Konoha was divided and nationalism didn't unite firecountry, which had isolationist views as a whole. She heard 'Uchiha' and 'Konoha' apart to many times for comfort. She and Sasuke were currently curled in Mikoto's lap while Fuguku looked on and tried to speak. His frown lines at the corner of his mouth might as well have been canyons.

Internally she was pulling her hair. As soon as the attack happened she should have been flipping and listening in on the meetings, no matter if she could understand most of it. It still would have been important to clue in on the clan-village relationship.

Because it was important.

These meetings are where the coup was born.

Her dad had been resistant at first, but after years had caved. She couldn't let that happen.

Even now she could see them wearing down on him, even if it was just his patience.

Getting even more annoyed, she felt the call of nature and new it would be soon when they were both taken to be changed, not to return. She would miss her chance to do anything.

She sat up. No one except Sasuke and Mikoto payed attention.

She would have to change that.

Slowly, she started crawling (still new at this) across the mahogany table.

Her father was watching now.

She kept at it and now stopped before the gaping elders, and plopped down in the meanest, grouchist ones lap.

And let the call of nature be heard.

Well, not heard. The smell traveled across the room to all the occupants noses. The elders stiffened in shock and offense. The fan moved in succession, blowing around the air. She thought it was fitting, with all the bullshit coming out of their mouths. Silent but deadly she guessed.

"That's enough for one day. We can hold another meeting at another time."

Still to shocked to do anything but look offended and sputter, her father reached over and plucked her up, careful to direct her tush away from himself.

They stood up and left the room. The elders could help themselves out, apparently.

Eventually, the elders left. But not before her dad lifted her up to eye level, and did his best impression of a happy, warm, look.

...

The meetings started sooner than expected. But she was prepared. Every night for weeks on end, she had been prepping Sasuke. His first words, plural, were English. He could also form Syllables in this language and she had him string together enough to form his 'first word'. He had come pretty close though to forming others. The other day he kinda sorta said Itachi's name. Said boy of course, was practically jumping with joy. His eyes gleamed in the corners, and a warm tender smile found his lips. She was slightly jealous she didn't think of that before mentally slapping herself;she was happy for them.

She was being carried by Fugaku, who had taken a liking to her. She needed to watch that so her twin wouldn't feel overlooked. Sasuke was just to her left, being held similarly by Mikoto. Who was as beautiful as ever. To her immense surprise, they turned and were gently deposited into the nursery instead of attending the meeting with them.

Yeah no.

She scowled, and, sensing her bad mood, Sasuke joined in. She had no choice. She didn't like using her newfound ability, as it tired her out, and people might sense something wrong with her. Which there was.

Reaching out her senses to the new person, she tried to get a feel on his chakera-and immediately flinched in shock. It was stronger than anything she had ever felt before. Almost like a god. Whoever this was, he was incredibly important and powerful. She needed to cash in on this.

So wrapped up in her thoughts and blanket, plotting how to open the door in all, she didn't notice it until it was staring her in the face.

Sasuke leaned over her. From his position _standing._

Ruffles of hair crossed his forehead and eyebrows as he leaned over her, supporting himself on the corner of the basket. Dark doe eyes looked down with concern.

Sasuke was a genius!

"Bah!" she shouted excitedly.

Thrashing to get the blankets off, Sasuke squawked in surprise and fell on top of her. Squealing she let out a strained giggle as he pushed himself up and tumbled out of the basket, her following closely behind.

Both of them laid stunned on their backsides, before bursting into giggles.

Still giggling, she rolled over onto her knees, put her arms in sit up position, and pushed up. And promptly over balanced and landed face first onto Sasuke's still shaking tummy. Fun times over. She got up again, face scrunched up in concentration, and collapsed halfway through.

Sasuke adopted the worried look, and with effort, stood up right in front of her grounded ass. Show off.

He frowned in concentration and stuck out his right hand, the other instinctively grabbing the wall for balance. Catching his drift, he crawled up to the wall and leaned on it. Using that and his hand for support she stood;

And took her first steps.

It was wobbly and the exact opposite of graceful. But her heart still swelled anyway, and the loudest laugh yet left her. Letting go of the wall, she stepped forward with Sasuke and her clinging to each other for support. She walked right up to the door, pushed it open(not locked) and into the hallway.

Better watch out, cause they were coming for you!


	8. Chapter 8

Since her and Sasuke's chakra reserves were so small, there was no way they could be sensed. Despite being the opposite of graceful their footsteps were swallowed by their socked feet, which glided more than anything over the tile.

Their giggles were drowned out by their tiny gasps, smiles stretching across their teething mouths. She felt the all powerful one's Chakra spike in interest and grinned. Her plan was already working and all she had to do was arrive. Their parents chakara remained stagnate.

She felt a giggle bubble in Sasukes tummy, as her arms were wrapped around him.

"Shh..." She did her best to shush him. He seemed to get it as he fell mostly silent. She hoped the door was open like it was in their room. If not, they could always be noisy until someone opened it.

Ah! It was the same room new dad was talking to Itachi in when they crawled for the first time!

Wow. That room was made for grand entrances. A lot of things were going down there, and when she was old enough, she would make a memorial or something. If the door wasn't cracked this time, then it could be easily slid open. But she would give her parents some credit; no way would they leave it open with a Shinobi like that visiting.

They approached and the conversation inside halted.

"Itachi?" Her new dad called.

She took a deep breath.

"BAH! HA!"

Sasuke laughed, loud and joyfully.

"HABAH HA"

Their laughter and baby blabble blocked out the sound of footsteps, so when the door opened, it was slightly surprising.

Mikoto was looking at both of them, surprise lighting up her face. Her figure loomed above them, light dusting her hair and shoulders, contrasting with the dark hallway.

"Miko? Sasuke?"

They giggled and toddled in around her legs, only to finally trip on the rug where she was sitting and roll to a stop next to the low table, laughing like two miniature earth quakes. A deep rumble like thunder joined them and startled them out of their laughter. Wriggling around, they turned. She first spotted Fugaku, who looked both proud and stunned. Having both of them walk here was quite the achievement.

But then she spotted who the other one was.

Despite his small stature in comparison to her father and the flowing white robes, he literally radiated power. He somehow managed to keep his smoking pipe in his mouth despite his chuckles, and his beard was on point.

This was The Third Hokage.

Plot twist. She was not expecting this. But then again what was she expecting?

His laughter abated and he gave them both appraising looks. Both of them had never seen a stranger like this up close before with the weird colored hair. She snapped to attention.

Resuming her laughing, she makes the 'up' gesture at the hokage. He leans over, bemused, and picked her up.

It was indescribably. She actually had to shut of her sensor abilities he was so strong. She felt safe and secure. And of course, wherever she went so did Sasuke, so he crawled over and demanded to be picked up, and soon, both of his arms were filled with babies.

He baby talked in his own way, and bounced them a bit, much to their delight. She noticed her new parents. Her parents fingers slowly unclenched, her mom's stiff back bended a bit, and her dad's breath even out. Faintly, she remembered the firm tense Chakra that permeated the house before she and Sasuke arrived. It seemed things weren't going well. Good thing they came when they did. This was post-Ninetails. If they wanted to reconnect with the village or stop the fissure altogether, this was the place to start. Besides Sasuke was named after Lord third's father.

He continued speaking. He sounded like he was relaxing now-the same with her parents. He was speaking about them! He said Miko and Sasuke!

Sasuke fidgeted.

Lord Third asked something in a questioning tone.

He burbled, then opened his mouth.

"Kon-ha?"

His first non-English word; Konoha.

She grinned, her plan was a success.

There was a stunned silence in the room. The Third looked up at her parents at their equally startled faces then back at Sasuke. She didn't even mind he was stealing the lime-light.

Then the loudest laugh yet left him.

 _Cha-Ching._


	9. Chapter 9

The rest of the meeting went smoothly.

After giving them back to their parents, the Hokage and her parents talked. She wasn't sure about what, but from their tones and body language it was important. They seemed to come to an agreement, and the four walked the Hokage to the door. He patted her and Sasuke on the head with a fond smile and made his way out of the street. Her father carried both of them proudly.

While ridiculously happy it went so well, she was tired and missed her warm pillow. She was also worried about Itachi. He had started his first day at the academy and would graduate in a year.

She would be lying if she said she wasn't worried.

So while Sasuke slept heavily(it had been a long day) She stayed up for a bit longer and worried. She wanted to wait until Itachi got home.

Thus commenced the battle between her and her eyelids. The rotating cats winked in and out of sight. Sasuke's steady breathing and the gentle breeze were a serious challenge. But when she felt his familiar faint Chakra appearing on the edge of her admittedly small range, she smiled happily and turned into Sasuke, who shifted in response. She sank quickly into a half aware state, in awe of the extreme toasty comfort of the crib and her twin.

She didn't notice the door opening and closing, or the person watching them until something leaned over and kissed Sasuke on the cheek.

Her eyes fluttered open.

The person moved from Sasuke to her and she found herself reflected in a pair dark eyes hovering above her. Breath that smelled like sweets fanned over her face as Itachi leaned over to kiss her too. She closed one eye as a stand of hair escaped his loosening ponytail.

He seemed exhausted from his first day at the academy. His eye lines seemed just a bit deeper. She reached up clumsily and tugged on the strand when he tried to move away. She didn't want him to go!

He smiled tiredly and wrapped her smaller, chubbier, hand in his and gentle pulled her off. So she pulled out her trump card.

Sniffling loudly, she enjoyed the panicked look on his face as he glanced at the sleeping Sasuke.

He eased his arms under her floppy body and lifted her aginest his chest. He murmured softly to her about his day. She heard some familiar terms, like 'sensei' and 'Izumi', and she felt him untense and relax as he spoke of his day.

Eventually, she was rocked to sleep as he moved his arms and spoke in a low tenor voice.

Birds chirped outside the window before they were chased away from cat summons, squawking loudly. But that's not what woke her up. A index finger was poking her cheeck and cooing even louder than her mother.

She snuffed and held her arms against her chest. Sasuke yawned and shifted to the side.

Itachi's exasperated and protective voice rang out, telling this new person to back off.

She blinked her eyes open and the voice cooed even louder. She should probably see who this was. She opened her eyes to the one who was pivotal to saving the Uchiha clan.

She was so shocked she started choking and coughing.

Itachi worriedly picked her up and patted her back as she coughed on his shoulder.

Shisui worried in the back round and she sent a reassuring gummy smile back at him. She was going to wrap him around her pinkie finger.


	10. Chapter 10

She actually liked kids.

She accepted them as the slobbering, dependent, callous little shits they were, and not just because she was one herself. There was just something refreshing in a child's bluntness, and unconditional love. Like when Sasuke burbled and gave her a slobbery kiss, or even Itachi, when he would rest his chin on top of their heads and just hold them against his chest. She knew they were what he loved the most.

It was adorable when Itachi would come into the room during nap-time and just whisper about his day. Now that they were almost two, walking and talking, he was doing this less often. But from what she knew, it was out of character for him to be this open.

But back to the point.

In an annual meeting of the clans, basically all the important people within the clans came. Yamakan, Nara, Hyūga, basically all the important clans in one giant meeting. The adults and co. went into one room, and babies and small children in another.

She and Sasuke fell under the category of babies/small children.

Itachi would have, if he wasn't so insanely smart.

Currently present babies; Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Hinata, Shino, Kiba, Neji, a few others, Sasuke, and yours truly.

Her spidey senses were tingling.

This was an opportunity she couldn't pass up. Multiple clan heirs here and all hers to be friends with. If she made strong enough bonds and visited them often enough, it would form connections between the Uchiha and every other major clan. Ones that would be substantially harder to cut.

Currently, Ino was pulling Shikamaru's hair. Shikamaru had turned away from everyone with his butt up in the air, napping. Choji was rapidly eating some baby food, struggling with the narrow lid while accidentally splashing Hinata with some. Hinata was wincing every time a fleck hit her. Shino was sitting in the corner, staring at a spiderweb.

She clapped her hands and got to work.

She walked clumsily to Ino and handed her her plushie with the soft fur. Ino blinked, then smiled, taking the plushie and pulling it instead. Shikamaru turned and looked at her, before closing his eyes.

She walked over to Choji and sat down heavily. Making sure he was still holding it, she peeled the lid all the way back, Choji shooting her a partially toothless grin as he ate much more easily. She made her way over to Hinata, with the flecks on her face. She pulled a napkin from the box on the book shelf, and wiped it off.

Sasuke didn't appreciate her separation from her, and trailed after her, interacting with the others.

She finally made it to Shino. He was searching for the spider but the only one was a daddy long-legs curled up at the bottom. He watched her as she stuck out one chubby finger and poked it. The spider instantly popped back to life, much to Shino's delight.

She carried out these small interactions, Sasuke eventually getting in on it and playing with Ino over the plushie. Secretly she thinks he just wanted something to cuddle.

When their mothers come to pick them up, many upper baby lips were trembling, and she grinned like a fox when the words 'play date' fell from their mother's lips.


	11. Chapter 11

So far, everything was going according to plan.

Under the guise of a innocent two year old, she had wrapped almost the entire clan around her pinkie finger. Most notably her father.

A perfect example being the fair from a couple weeks ago. The fair was an important event in Konoha, and being allowed a part in it was considered an honor and you needed to be screened to be chosen.

She had cried in her mothers arms, demanding her 'Tou tou' and when she had started whinging high-pitched, Mikoto had caved and handed her over. Miko then refused to be let go.

And thus, Fugaku carried her into the room with the awaiting screeners, sniffling in her fathers arms. The point blank surprise on their faces was amusing, and she had giggled cutely.

And with her scrunched up pink nose, chubby pink cheeks, curly hair up in loose pig-tails, wide dark eyes, and matching pink onesie, she saw all the hearts collectively _melt._

Getting the spot at the festival-fair whatever, had been a lot easier than it should have been because of her.

Fugaku wasted no time. Still carrying her, he told Mikoto to visit all the Uchiha civilians, especially their aunt and uncle bakers, to set up a food stand. He purposely picked the most 'kind-hearted' Uchiha, and what better people for a festival mostly for civilians than actual civilians? Contrary to popular belief, a solid minority of the Uchiha were civilians. Being a part of the clan didn't inherently mean you would get the Sharingan, or even be a good ninja. There was always the chance of being crippled.

The clan elders naturally protested, saying it was beneath them to celebrate or whatever, but they surprisingly shut up when she waddled and smiled cutely (almost threateningly), sitting on their laps.

They were full of shit, but so was she.

Smirking, Fugaku had plowed onwards, taking their permission from them and escorting them generously from the house. Carrying her.

She wriggled.

He held her up to eye level and she then proceeded to expand her very, very small vocabulary.

"Po-ice." She burbled, eyebrows scrunched up in concentration.

As the head of the police force, which was mostly compromised of Uchiha, he was able to gather everyone up for a office meeting. He asked for volunteers, and then veterans who would be able to explains how the force works, and how they protect the people.

Soon they had a set set up consisting of DNA analysis, real examples of solved cases the people could try to solve themselves, and most importantly, applications for internships. If someone who wasn't a Uchiha was qualified, they would be picked up. This garnered protests, but a teary-eyed looked later and most were silenced. Most even began to see this as a good thing-doing their jobs as police was hard without the trust of the people they were trying to protect.

It was a smashing success.

At first, people had been wary to approach, and there had been a clear circle around their giant stand.

Then the food arrived.

The smell of their excellent cooking wafted through the dusky air around dinner time, and they could hear the hungry bellies. The fact that it was for free(for the most part) nearly caused a stampede. People munched on buns while reading up the history of the force, exclaiming aloud when they found out something they hadn't known before. Like the fact it had been gifted to them by lord second.

They had laughed and crowed triumphantly when trying to solve the cases, and had either passed with a disbelieving scoff, or a considering glance at the application. Some had even picked them up.

Other clan shinobi came over, most notably from the Ino-Shika-Cho group. Mostly to commend them on their display.

Miko had purposefully positioned herself and Sasuke in the front, playing cutely to disarm and relax the spectators. And if the coo's were anything to go by, it was working.

And then Lord Third came.

The crowds parted like the red sea, each bowing and murmuring their respects. He stopped in front of the table, picking up a bun.

Everyone watched with baited breath.

At his pleased hum, the entirety of the Uchiha released their breaths.

Lord Third then winked at her and Sasuke, said a few words of praise to Fugaku, and walked off.

They were the most popular stand that night, promising a return next time, whenever that may be.


	12. Chapter 12

Mikoto, as the clan matriarch, had a lot of responsibilities. Some of those included visiting the Uchiha families. But as a mother, her duty was to take care of her children, specifically the two youngest. Her and Sasuke.

So she took them with her, and Miko saw this as the opportunity it was; connection building. Up until now, she had been mainly focused on building connections from the outside, such as playing with other clan kids and getting a place at the fair. But those outside connections would mean nothing if she didn't have any inside connections. If the Uchiha weren't willing to accept and improve upon them. To interact with them.

She needed to scout out the clan, get a read on all the people who she would be saving in order to make her job of saving them easier. She used her feeble sensory abilities to detect hostiles and friendlies.

She didn't know why she was put on this world, but she liked to think it was because she had a purpose.

What she would be looking for was potential allies and Uchiha she would need to smooth over, or at the very least point out to her parents as 'bad'. As she had mentioned, a fair amount of Uchiha weren't ninja. And even being a ninja in the clan didn't guarantee you the Sharingan. It only occurred in a few members, which was why those who had it were so powerful. Prominent. And arrogant.

The same arrogance that got the clan killed.

She needed to know who she could work with and who she needed to put in their place. Like those shitty clan elders.

She found that civilians by far had the best social skills. They sold mostly to the clan, but she already saw the fruits of her labor. The caterers for the fair were expanding their markets to other Konoha residents. Then Uchiha who sold things other than food, like ninja gear and products took notice of this, discussing with Mikoto for permission. After all, the Yamanaka, Akimichi, and Nara were doing just that, with their flowers, food, and herbs respectively.

Fugaku had naturally gave them the green light, a shiny eyed look from her had sealed the deal.

But what seemed to be the Uchiha's main selling point was art.

Yes. Art.

There was a fair few crippled ninja from the Shinobi wars (the third one ended recently) and most-if not all, had the Sharingan due to these traumatizing events. So what could you do, with a steady hand(if you still had one) and an amazing eye for detail?

Art.

It made sense when she though about it. Art was a way to cope, lord knows what trauma the Uchiha went through. And the Uchiha were known for being emotionally deep people who loved too much. The curse of hatred stemmed from that deep potential for love. Like if a loved one died, like Madara's brother or Obito's love, Rin.

And art, true art, was fueled by emotions.

Miko was 100% for this. Art was something no one expected from this clan, and throwing off stereotypes was what she was all about.

So today, they were visiting people again, and this time it was that merry group of artists she was just talking about.

Turns out, they weren't so merry.

She couldn't blame them for that, being a cripple wasn't cool. No shit. But the aura they all had, of people who've seen hell, convinced her to continue onwards. And the jaw-dropping, awe-inspiring, ethereal, masterpieces had her sold.

It was like she had never seen before. Amazing oil paintings of the sunset that looked like it was drifting off the canvas. A sharp kunai reflecting a red eye. A bright red apple held in a hand. A tree with a swing set being thrown in the wind, giving the illusion of a ghost child.

But the best possible one was the painting of Konoha. It was of it from one of the wall gates, with the Hokage mountain being framed by various homes, stores, and trees. It perfectly captured the essence of the village with swift strokes for the buildings, solid ones for the mountain, and looping ones for the trees.

Obviously, more intimate pieces like the kunai one would stay here, but the ones like the village would go up on display. The crippled clanspeople had no problem with selling some of their art, and in fact were happy about this. The money would go in parts to charity(for injured shinobi-it was Mikoto's idea), the clan, and then themselves, and it made them feel better, like they were contributing. Which they were.

She watched with Sasuke from behind Mikoto's legs as they carried the paintings out.

It was much later and over a family meal when she found out what had happened to the village painting. One of the artist allies had knocked frantically with his remaining hand, winded. A desk chunin had been observing the display, him being a friend of a Uchiha, and was told to check it out. He ran back to the Hokage tower and then back to the display, buying it up right then and there.

Now, whenever you went into the Hokage tower, one of the first things you'd see was a spectacular painting of the village, and in the lower left hand corner, the clear script of one Akira Uchiha.


	13. Chapter 13

So far, everything was going well.

Itachi was doing fantastic in the academy, pleasing some of the more proud and stuck up members of the clan. She and Sasuke were walking and taking and would be training soon.

They had worked nonstop visiting various members of the clan, and now, even non-crippled members and those without the Sharingan were getting onto the art ride. Something that had surprised her but probably shouldn't have was the huge amount of paintings and pottery with cats on them. One of her cousins had gotten the bright idea to make a clay cat then through it up in the air as target practice for his great fireball jutsu.

And what do you know, he baked it. Bisque fired it. Baffled that it had actually worked, he started a trend of roasting pottery with fireballs. It was hilarious honestly. A clan of cat lovers, that's what they were.

Suffice to say though, she and Sasuke had been working hard recently.

Work-hard play-hard. Mikoto had arranged a play-date for them. It was time to catch up on those promises made at the meeting.

Currently, they were puffing behind an amused Mikoto, as they made their way across Konoha.

Through huffs of breath she murmured to Sasuke in English.

" _Play nice, make friends."_

" _Okay._ " He puffed back.

The were going to the Nara clan compound for a play-date with Shikmaru. Apparently, he kept asking for "curly", or her it was assumed. Which was good. She had been trying to make an impression and had apparently succeeded, that glance over his shoulder and the fact he had actually opened his eyes to look at her was a pretty big deal. Ino and Choji wouldn't be there, but the most surprising person would; Hinata.

And again now that she thought about that, it wasn't surprising.

The Uchiha and the Hyuga were infamous for their rivalry. While the Uchiha were still considered the more powerful of the two, it made sense that if Fugaku was sending his daughter, Hiashi would send his. Hinata.

Their mothers had left them in Shikamaru's room. Her and Hinata, Sasuke and Shikamaru. Hinata nervously sat by herself, eyes darting to Miko as if to hide behind her. And Shikamaru had yet to take his eyes off Miko.

When they had first arrived, Shikamaru was out cold. His mother had to shake him to wake him. He had rubbed his eyes lazily, like it wasn't worth the effort then looked around the room through a hooded gaze.

When it landed on her, his eyes popped open. And stayed like that.

Then he slowly crawled forward, hauling himself off the carpet. She stayed still-wanting to see what he would do. Sasuke had stopped chewing his toy and was now glaring (cutely) at Shikamaru, daring him to try anything, but also remembering what she said.

Well Shika didn't care and with one chubby hand, took a lock of her curly hair.

"Curly." He murmured.

"Shika!" She said back. Hearing his name startled him, a smile curling up on his face.

The rest of the meeting consisted of Shika staying near her, and her coaxing Hinata out of her shell. Because Mikoto and Hinata's mom were talking right now, it made sense for them to do the same.

It was very successful, with the mothers coming in to watch them about halfway through, even taking a couple pictures with their polaroids. At the end, she got Hinata, normally shy and passive, to giggle and play with her and Sasuke.

Her end goal; to get close enough to Hinata to prevent the Hyuga affair.

And with the friendly chatter between their two mothers, it was looking more and more likely.


	14. Chapter 14

Time was of the essence.

The Hyūga affair happened not to long after Hinata's third birthday, and they were at least two and a half. She had a year, give or take, to overcome a centuries long rivalry (Though not as bad as it was with the Senju) and get close enough to the Hyūga to stop the event. And then get credited for stopping it without looking like the Uchiha set it up.

They had been on a few more play dates since then, with various clan kids from the original meeting.

She got along well enough with all of them, and had already started to see progress. The Akimichi clan was lending tips to her aunt and uncle who branched out to the rest of Konoha, and even discussed maybe combining some of their more minor foods.

Ino's clan who owned the flower shop let Mikoto buy flowers at a discount. Shikaku, the Nara clan head, talked with Fugaku at the police station. Apparently, Shika had asked about her. They had worked together on a case dealing with Shinobi criminals within Konoha.

Not much, but it was more than before.

Which then leads her to Hinata.

It was basically a competition at this point between their two fathers, sending their daughters to visit the same person. Then one day, she had enough and went up to Fugaku, asking nicely to play with Hinata and just Hinata, with Mikoto in hearing distance to hear her cry if he said no.

"Wanna pl'y wit Hinat." She spoke as clearly as possible.

The surprise was not something easily hidden, but he masked himself pretty well. Just as she was debating the pro's of wobbling her lower lip, his expression cleared into something distinctively positive.

A smile.

An actual, proud smile. He threw his head back and laughed.

Shattering dishes could be heard from the kitchen over the laughing as Mikoto rushed in to see the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Instead only to be greeted by her stoic, clan head, police chief husband laughing almost to the point of tears.

Miko was bewildered too. Like she had never seen him laugh this hard, and it's been two years. Scratch that, she had never seen him with that much expression, period.

And apparently neither had her mother.

After he had calmed down and explained to Mikoto, she was annoyed and crabby. Mikoto, who was friendly with the Hyūga matriarch due to all the tag-along play-dates, said she could arrange something.

Not really having anything else to do she decided to catch up with Sasuke. He had been upset with her spending all this time with strange other kids instead of him. Sasuke was delighted to see her again and to show his appreciation he planted a big sloppy kiss on her cheek.

" _I love you, Sasuke!"_

" _Me too! Lets play!"_

They colored with crayons until they heard a familiar voice announcing their arrival.

"Nii-san!" They shrieked, jumping him with two hugs. He donned a startled look, before it melted into a sweet smile. After promising Mikoto to do his homework later, Itachi took off his shoes and played with them.

They stacked blocks into pyramids and houses, then laughed when one of them accidentally knocked it over. She could see Itachi relax, especially when Sasuke tugged on his arm. While she knew Itachi loved everyone dearly, including her, he loved Sasuke with all his heart. It was clear that everything he did was in some way to protect Sasuke. Because if itachi failed in his duties as heir, that would fall to Sasuke.

Somehow, Itachi already realized she wasn't like Sasuke. Her acting was flawless, but you couldn't fake innocence. She had goals and people were starting to notice. And maybe that was a good thing.

Itachi was the one who originally killed the clan with the help of Tobi, if she really wanted to stop the massacre, she needed to get him onboard. She had been so focused on the others that possibly the one most vital had been essentially left out of her master plan.

Itachi had been admired from many people just because of his level headed-ness and lack of warranted arrogance. Itachi was different then most of the clan shinobi because of his respect towards others.

Ah. So that's what she could do with him.

But how was she supposed to manipulate one of the most powerful ninja's the world had ever produced? Did she need to manipulate him? Maybe all she had to do was point him in the right direction. Itachi could be a lifeline for the clan, connecting them to the village. He would serve Konoha faithfully and gain respect from the others and appease the stick-up-the-ass elders.

His cool head and compassion for peace was not to be understated. Hands went under her armpits and lifted her up to an inquisitive gaze.

"What are you thinking of, Imouto?"

Not knowing what else to do, she bit Itachi on the nose.


	15. Chapter 15

So far so good.

She and Hinata went on play dates in the park, under heavy supervision from both clans. She braided Hinata's hair, included her in games, and made sure she knew Miko liked her. Miko found herself genuinely enjoying her company.

She suggested that maybe they should have a sleep-over.

And so, their first sleepover was at the Uchiha compound. Hinata's now slightly pregnant mother had packed her a night-bag. They didn't stay up so late-almost three year old's had limits. But when she woke up, cuddled next to Hinata who smelled like lavender and let out cute little snores, she thought she could get used to this.

Sasuke was annoyed cause he wasn't allowed to sleep with the girls.

But when they all came down and the entire family including Hinata was treated to one of the best breakfasts they had ever eaten, he calmed down. A knock at the door had Itachi getting up to answer. He came back with the Hyuga clan head.

Sasuke choked on his tomato.

Mikoto offered him some rice and surprisingly he nodded, eyes scanning his daughter and satisfied when she was unharmed. Indeed, this was possible the happiest she had ever seen her.

It was tense, but not unbearably so, and when Hinata left, her father gave Miko one last considering look. She shot him a toothy grin.

As it was his house, Fugaku didn't need the elders permission to let Hinata stay overnight. It was when Fugaku looked at her over his plate of food with a proud smile she knew this would become a thing.

The next time she slept over, it was at Hinata's house. They were very hospitable and ever more traditional than the Uchiha. It wasn't unpleasant, however, and she thinks she impressed them with her manners she had learned from Okaa-san.

It soon became a thing. Hyuga clan members and Uchiha nodded politely in the streets to each other instead of glaring, and worked better together on missions, the daughters of their clan head's on their minds.

The other noble clans noticed their two strongest clans on better terms with each other and wanted in on it. Which meant play dates and meetings. A lot of them.

It was at one of these meetings she heard one of her cousins and Shino's cousin speaking about Kumo coming to town in three days. She sucked in her lower lip nervously and went to ask her parents for a sleepover.

On the day Kumo arrived, she and Hinata were putting braids into each other's hair and learning how to put messages in flowers. Instead of instantly falling asleep like she normally would, she laid wide awake. It was her turn to let Hinata sleepover, and just by stretching her evidently underused senses, she could tell there was nearly double the guards, as there always was when they had a sleepover.

With that reassurance in mind she fell asleep.

She woke up to shouting.

At least ten of her relatives plus her parents were in her room, frantically asking if they were alright. Hinata clung to her, and much to her shame she clung back. Mikoto made them hot chocolate as the situation cleared up. Fugaku and Hisahi were both missing.

They weren't let out of sight after that, Hinata's mom coming over.

It took awhile, but she learned that when the Kumo-nin realized Hinata wasn't in her room, he radioed his other accomplices, who searched the area. He was quickly apprehended. The other three had closed in on the Uchiha, only to be incapacitated by them. All nin survived for interrogation.

The Hyūga gave a public official thanks to the Uchiha, leading to Konoha's two most powerful clans to be on the best terms in their entire respective histories.


	16. Chapter 16

The Uchiha who were stubborn at the beginning were slowly swayed over a period of months. This was the same clan who rejected Madara and his quest for power. They had fought for so long and had just wanted peace. A lot had changed within the clan, but that had not. Which was why despite their anger for years of discrimination, they accepted the good-will with open arms.

There was an effect of the almost kidnapping that she hadn't counted on-Massive sympathy was directed towards their two clans, and almost all of Konoha, The other clans and village elders, united behind them, putting on a united front for the Kumo nin. She had just wanted to get her and Hinata's clans on better terms, no way had she thought this would happen. But she was glad all the same.

Fugaku and Hisahi had been brutal in their demands, but her father thought smart. Instead of demanding all out war, he wanted an humiliating apology, and they edited the treaty at the last minute-putting Kumo at a disadvantage. But they couldn't back out of it now, because their military might have been stronger but they were being held hostage. They would go back with their tail between their legs, locked in.

There was also another unintended side effect. Itachi would hardly let her out of his sight. He would come home from training and his eyes would dart to her. He actually 'trained', with them, making sure she knew basic self defense. He rushed home from school and refused to start his homework unless he saw her first. It's like he forgot that she was different than Sasuke.

She must have given him quite a scare.

And when her safety was assured, he threw himself into training and she knew just by looking at him that he was already able to graduate. She stretched out her senses, carefully searching for him, and recoiled in slight shock when she sensed two of him. One throwing kunai in the yard, the other watching her from the roof. A shadow clone then.

This threw a huge monkey wrench in her plans.

How could she carry out her plots and scheme while maintaining the guise of an innocent 3 year old when Itachi the prodigy always had eyes on her?!

At any rate, Sasuke was playing over at Choji's house, and Mikoto was getting ready to make her rounds within the clan. Even then, with Mikoto as an accomplished Jounin, Itachi would still sometimes send a shadow clone.

But thankfully he didn't this time.

They went and visited relatives, some who had been effected by the Nine-tails attack and then an idea hit her. She tugged Mikoto's shirt and whispered into her ear if they could set up a donation fund for those effected by the attack.

She didn't know why she hadn't thought about it earlier and vowed to find out more information. Mikoto had seen the potential that idea nugget had, and had booked it to the Uchiha art institute, which was a thing now. They had already been the most powerful clan, and had even lucked out and avoided the nine-tails in the attack. So donating a certain amount every month wouldn't harm them. It fact, it would improve relations. Maybe they could even donate time to help repair some of the areas that are _still_ damaged!

People were suspicious on how they avoided damage-this could clear the air so to speak. She had learned that some Uchiha had helped with evacuation and afterwards with cleanup. But not rebuilding.

It had taken two weeks to get everything in line, and even then they started out small, with about 5% of the artists earnings plus the other 10% going to charity.

Konoha was at first in shock, and rumbles and rumors spread.

But after the funds put clothes on orphans backs, and some members were spotted helping with rebuilding, thanks you's were sent in, and there was an uptick in the artists sales. Some people though were defiantly offended by their offer of help, dead set in their belief that the Uchiha were the ones who caused it.

But seeing a little Naruto run away in the distance with a radiant smile on his face was entirely worth it.

In canon, the nine-tails attack was the beginning of the end.

Maybe here it could be the start of something new.


	17. Chapter 17

It was that time of year again.

Their third birthday's had been a spectacle for sure. It wasn't just their relatives, but people from almost every clan in Konoha. Ino, Shika, Choji, Hinata, Shino, and Kiba among the few many others. Miko had been a perfect mini hostess, and with some softly spoken English to Sasuke, he had wooed even stone hearted Hisahi, the mans eye's softening.

Itachi and Shisui had mostly stuck to the back, mingling with other kids like Hana and Izumi. From the sound of it, they were planning a training session.

The party ended late into the night, Sasuke having already nodded off, with some of the other kids. She blearily waved goodbye to her guests.

A bit after her third birthday was when the fair would be held again and when her father came to her with a question in his gaze, she smiled (almost savagely) because she had some ideas and boy was she ready to share.

The art institue wasn't a institute so much as it was one of the wealthier Uchiha's house, rooms furnished with supplies and the living rooms and basement used for various projects and turned into studios.

It was all rather cool, she thought as they walked into it.

Last year, the police force was the star of the show, this year it would be the Art institute. Akira, whose house this was, was ecstatic. He had known the fair would be soon, he just didn't think he would be able to star in it.

They plotted and plan, Miko next to her fathers side like his most trusted adviser, chirping suggestions like a bird on his shoulder that they then took hold of. By the time of the fair in two weeks everything was ready.

A stand covered in hyper-realistic paintings, a closeup of eyes. It was an amazing piece, more accurate than the primitive cameras they have here. The people had never seen anything like it and were scrambling to get a look. Blue eyes, gray eyes, green eyes, brown eyes, and black eyes, came together to create a unifying piece.

Again, they were the most popular stand. A fair few people had made a bee-line towards them.

Pottery, mostly of cats but also other pieces lined the table. A cat cookie jar. A cat statue, and a tree shaped to hold jewelry. People were allowed to pick up some of the pieces and feel the texture and marvel at the glaze work. The cash register made constant noise with how many had flown off the table.

Did she mention half of the proceedings were going to charity? Well the sign leaning on the front of the tables sure did.

Posters hanging in the background detailed instructions on how to paint, or what wedging was, intriguing people. It made them want to try it themselves. At this, they were directed to the end of one of the tables with two piles of paper. One stack for artists to sign up and directions to make it to the institute, the others leftover forms for the police force.

They had to run and make more copies.

But the star of the show was occupying the entire side of the building, with lights trained on it.

The Hokage mountain was framed by swiftly painted buildings and towering looping trees, training grounds visible and shadings making it look like it was just painted after sunrise-promising a beautiful day. Gasps were heard from some of the people as they recognized it as the painting that had been hanging in the Hokage tower for a year now.

People gasped and stared with mouths open, because every time they looked they found something new, something that they knew from their everyday lives. A light was strategically placed in the lower left-hand corner, highlighting the signature of Akira Uchiha.

It had been her idea, and Fugaku and Akira personally went themselves to request to use it for the fair. Permission was granted. Artists were on stand by to draw quick portraits for a customer, and it was probably one of the most popular things about their stand.

They brought back the buns from last year, along with advertisements for her Aunt and Uncles business. A veteran from the force was there to answer questions.

By the time it was done, it had been even more successful than last year.

But just because this was done, it didn't mean her work was over. She fell asleep on Fugaku's shoulder to the sound of discussions, discussions of how to accommodate the incomers for the police force, and plans of maybe renting a building in the heart of the village for the art institute.


	18. Chapter 18

Update from Akira Uchiha concerning the Police Force.

 _I suggested to you and with your permission, the non shinobi Uchiha have been brought into the police force. I know at first, you were reluctant to accept Non-shinobi into the force, given the dangerous nature when dealing with criminal nin, and because Miko was there being fussy, but I am happy to put that to rest. Over all, the 'civilians' have had a positive impact on the force, how they deal with the public, and how they deal with us._

 _The force has become more open minded, and instead of resorting to force, most situations are being dealt with other ways. It's more sociable and cooperation is at an all time high._

 _The jump in public trust thanks to the fairs has made doing their jobs so much easier. Witnesses are more likely to come forward and there has been a definite spike in solved cases. The public treats the force with more respect than ever-especially when they see one of the newly hired officers. These new officers fundamentally think differently than the veterans, and this has the effect of devil's advocate, and thinking outside the box, bringing fresh new ideas in._

 _There is an air of hope here. The other day a woman brought in boxes of pastries as a thanks for helping her. As of now, the 'civilians' or non shinobi officers, have been dealing with civilian crimes instead of shinobi crimes. This has had the effect of relaxing them. They know how to handle it more efficiently._

 _Of course these cases are minor, as this idea is still stretching it's legs, but it has huge potential. It's not perfect and there is still tension, but the Non-shinobi Uchiha do act as a bridge for officers who aren't shinobi or Uchiha._

 _And, As someone who was involved in the force before my injury, it's a great pleasure to be able to join again._

 _Akira Uchiha_

Update from Akira Uchiha concerning the Art Institute.

 _When the Institute first started out, it was something small, more of a way to cope with the injuries of the war than anything else._

 _With some hastily bought supplies, we started a circle at my residence to deal with the trauma of war. With art, we expressed what words couldn't. We created an outlet, that for the first time in a long time, allowed us to heal. Something the medical nin or even the Yamakan couldn't do. We weren't trying to make masterpieces-that was just a side effect._

 _At the fair, people were genuinely touched by our work, which is the entire point of art. They appreciated it, and we even converted a few dog lovers! We were contributing to the clan and the charities, finding a use for ourselves and a sense of purpose through it. We sold a record number and people have been visiting my house ever since. We've already picked a suitable rental building in the heart of Konoha. We just need to clear a few more things, and with the money made at the fair and afterwards we will already have rent covered for the first few months, leaving my house to the original members._

 _I was initially against letting outsiders join, much to many peoples surprise. My rationale wasn't rationale so much as it was fear the healing would stop or even reverse. That our sanctuary would be destroyed._ _But this year at the fair, much like with your hesitance about the police force, I found my fears to be unfounded._

 _When the Institute first started out, it was something small, more of a way to cope with the injuries of the war._

 _It's beyond cooping now. It's beyond us._

 _It's healing Konoha._

 _It's something more._

 _Akira Uchiha._


	19. Chapter 19

Somewhere in between the almost kidnapping and the second fair, Itachi graduated from the academy.

It wasn't as big of a deal as it was in canon, due to the events said above, but it was still a big deal. The stick-up-the-ass elders and some of the more pompous Uchiha were doing the Uchiha version of shouting from the roof tops basically.

She could _feel_ Itachi curl in on himself like a roly poly. Clan members would come up to him and congratulate him, saying "You are doing the clan proud." But never asking how he was doing. Then they turned and started a conversation with each other right in front of Itachi-like he wasn't there! The topic of said conversation being Itachi! It was like they didn't even think he was a person, like he was some super-human being or a tool or something.

But he wasn't that.

He was her brother.

While she and Sasuke didn't share a room, they shared just about everything else-including their own secret language(English)! So they plotted, whispering 'nonsense' and grinning when their plan came together.

The next day Itachi was allowed one of his rare few breaks. Their parents where away on another meeting, and all the other clan kids were busy. The time was ripe. She sent Sasuke forward, who then started to complain loudly about being bored.

"-All my frewnds are busy!" He whined.

She dramatically tripped and fell and started to sniffle. Loudly. Itachi ran over and her wails increased.

"Are you okay?"

She blinked.

"D-do I kno-w-w you?"

...

"...I'm your Nii-san."

"O-oh." She moved her leg where a red spot was showing, and immediately started wailing louder.

"Is there anything I can do to make it better?"

"Wanna play." She pouted. Sasuke joined in, worrying over her.

"Okay, lets go in the yard-"

"NO!" She screamed in his ear.

"Park! Play park!"

Sasuke chipped in. "Make Mo feel beyer!" Itachi was still overprotective due to the kidnapping, so naturally he caved.

A flustered Itachi got them all ready, carried her in one arm and held Sasuke's hand with the other and carried them to the park. Behind Itachi's back they winked at each other. And so, they went to the park. But not just any park.

The biggest and most frequented in all of Konoha. Everyone at some point went there, which made their little foray and demand less suspicious.

He let them go and sat on a bench. She started crying and Sasuke hopped from foot to foot. People were started to look at them.

"But Aniki! What if mo get hurt again?!" Sasuke worried. Unable to say no for various reasons, Itachi did something he hadn't done in years.

He started to play. With them.

The people who were watching, made O's with their mouths when they saw the symbol on his back, before it turned into smiles. Konoha nin and civilians were all watching them, and when Miko invited some of the other kids to play, their parents did too.

Most of the eyes were on Itachi and she could see some of his hair stand on end-though he gave no other sign of discomfort. By this time, the news had swept all of Konoha about the Uchiha prodigy so he was easily recognizable even among the non-ninja. See him here and playing with his younger siblings and other children probably wasn't what they were expecting from him. It change him in their eyes.

It-

...

...It humanized him.

Not a weapon. Not a tool.

But Itachi, the big brother.

By the next day, news of the Uchiha prodigy-yes, that one-had swept Konoha. News about how he was just as good with kids as he was with kunai.


	20. Chapter 20

The Konoha Kat Kraze would go down in history.

Another unintended side effect. Miko was learning that there was a lot of those. Perhaps she should rewind? Well, after the fair, thousands of people went back home with something cat related. And in a village of roughly forty-thousand people that was a lot. They showed it off to their friends and used the cat cookie jar's or whatever. Then their friends thought 'hey, this is cool' and went to get some of their own.

Basically they started a trend.

The fair always had the potential to do that-which is why it's so hard to get in, but they apparently won the lottery on this one. And the excellent craftsmanship helped.

Suddenly everyone wanted a cat, and everyone wanted something cat related. The Art Institute had a hectic but very profitable first few months making cat ceramics. Suddenly cat summons that were regarded as the devil were constantly being pet by random people. Children shrieked in delight when the cats talked back or meowed. You could see people in the streets with cat ears or even some of the more hardcore people with black cat noses.

But even that was nothing compared to the business Nekobaa had. She later told Fugaku it was the best profit she had ever had. Period. She lived in the abandoned city where the Uchiha stored munitions and mostly selled supplies to the Uchiha. But she had a secondary location where she was more accessible to the public, and the place was hopping. She had personally thanked the clan.

Now came the second part of the trend; it wasn't a trend anymore. After two months and people had realized normal cats had to be taken care of. Given shots, etc. But by that time people had fallen in love with their pets. You could see grown men carrying cats like babies, and others with cats sitting on their shoulders. Restaurants put up signs that said **"No Cats Allowed"** and people bought laser pens just to watch the furry critters go wild.

But there was another unintended side effect.

The Inuzuka clan declared a state of emergency, shouting that they were being overrun from furry abominations. Hana Inuzuka, the clan heir and who also went to the training session planned on her third birthday, had cornered Itachi with her three dogs, saying he wouldn't get away with this. They paraded their dogs around in public, carrying them and kids even riding the bigger ones.

It was now officially cats v. dogs. Inuzuka v. Uchiha

And then dog ears were a thing, shirts saying _"I love my dogs"_ flew off the racks. She even thought she saw Kakashi wearing one of them, but she couldn't be sure. At their next play date, Sasuke had wrestled Kiba into submission, and Fugaku had patted him on the head.

It was when she had went to another multi-clan meeting when the clan heads came face-to-face. Tsume Inuzuka and Fugaku Uchiha locked eyes. Mikoto face palmed quietly. A hush fell across the room as the other clans waited to see who would move first.

The silence was broken by the clack of claws on tile.

Casually, a giant dog with an eye-patch walked in the middle of them, a cat summon riding on his back and licking her paw.

The clacks faded into the distance. Silence.

Then Tsume threw her head back and roared in laughter. The meeting went on as planned, Tsume and Fugaku throwing good-natured jabs at each other. And because Konoha was obsessed with anything cat or dog related, the news of the jockey dog spread to the corners of the Village.


	21. Chapter 21

Miko's list of possible conflicts and enemies and solutions. In no particular order. (Written in English)

 **1.** Danzo/Root.

Danzo had been under the tutelage of Lord Second. Lord Second himself didn't hate the Uchiha, but after spending the first years of his life locked in death battles with them certainly didn't help. He was well aware of The Uchiha's flaws through Madara, and he passed this onto Danzo. Not to mention the Sharingan on his arm.

Fixes; Remind Danzo the police force was a gift from Lord Second, his Sensei. Help the village, because ultimately that's what he cares about the most. Despite his decades of suspicious deeds, Danzō only ever acted in what he believed were the village's best interests. If she could could convince him keeping the Uchiha around was in the villages best interests, Itachi wouldn't be forced to execute them. The nine-tails was controlled by the Sharingan, she could try and frame him with the Sharingan on his arm. Danzo had tried to assassinate Hurizen before, she could use that to her advantage. An then there was the case of abducted Konoha citizens. Especially orphans. Wouldn't it be funny if she befriended a few orphans and then happen to bring them straight to her father? Or she could send another clan kid to one of their fathers, as not to cast suspicion on herself.

And maybe somehow she could expose root? Go up to her father and say a scary man with a x scar on his chin said something to her?

 **2.** Clan elders.

The council of clan elders was small, as most people didn't make it to the later stages in life. But they were still a problem. In canon, they were the ones who had first suggested the coup, feeling-rightfully, that the Uchiha weren't getting the respect they deserved and were even being discriminated against.

Fixes; Make sure the Uchiha is getting the respect they deserve. Through various events the clan is being recognized and stereotypes are shifting. Plus with all this extra power it satiates their greedy overstuffed butts. By increasing social standing and connecting with the majority of Konoha through fairs and businesses, it is possible to halt the prejudice right in it's tracks.

And well, they were all old anyway. They'd die soon enough.

 **3.** Orochimaru.

For now, he couldn't get into Konoha. He would be spotted right away. If she stayed here he couldn't get her or Sasuke. Plus Itachi could take him on. And he was involved with Danzo. She could try pitting the two against each other or have them incriminate each other.

 **4.** Tobi/Obito/Madara.

Obito was a dumbass, and one of the victims of the curse of hatred. Even if he was freed from Madara's control, he would still be desperate and deranged. Madara just wanted to destroy the Uchiha. And he wouldn't change his mind either.

Fixes; They were basically in the same boat on this as with Orochimaru. He was able to take advantage of existing anger within the clan and Konoha. If she focused on solving other problems like the clan elders and Danzo, he effectively would be neutered, as he would have nothing to manipulate. And again, Itachi could take the fucker.

 **5.** Sharingan/kekkei genkai hunters.

Stay in Konoha. Buddy system.

 **6.** The curse of hatred.

That talk circle at Akira's house helped many Uchiha overcome trauma and the curse. A little bit more of it could go a long way. But she didn't think Obito would be joining anytime soon.

 **7.** Jealously.

Now this was a problem. People in Konoha were already wary of the Uchiha, and their do-gooding may have helped a bit, some (Danzo) were alarmed by their rapid jumps in power and influence.

Fixes; Share that power and influence. This would rub the clan elders the wrong way for sure. But if they spread out it would be like dividing and conquering. They could make even stronger allies (Friends?)with the other clans by including them, thus having a safety net to fall back on. It wouldn't solely be the Uchiha gaining anymore-it would be every significant clan in Konoha.

It would be like that one spider-man movie; 'You mess with one of us you mess with all of us!'

-End list.


	22. Chapter 22

Operation Inclusion was a go.

The details of this 'Operation' was to make allies, friends, whatever, with as many clans as possible. Lift them up with the Uchiha, share power with them and connect the clans on unprecedented levels.

Miko, Mikoto, and Fugaku had all sat in a makeshift circle when Itachi had taken Sasuke out to train and got to work. At this point, her parents had realized she was a goldmine-they just didn't know the extent. So when she offered up some suggestions they had pens and paper ready.

Afterwards, Fugaku set out to make some phone calls, and Mikoto dressed to go and speak with people.

Some people by now may be asking, 'Miko this is unrealistic, why are they so ready to work for peace?"

And then you just answered your own question. The Uchiha were sick of war, of being mistreated. (It was why they rejected Madara, why Madara went rouge in the first place.)With these new advancements mostly thanks to Miko, that mistreatment, that war with the rest of Konoha is dying out. The situation is visibly improving dramatically and they want more. In canon they were willing to do anything to get their due-including a coup. Why is this so much of a stretch?

In any case here's what happened next.

Akira, head of the Art Institute, made a partnership with the Yamanaka clan. He would receive a shipment of their best flowers, then which he and the most skilled Art Institute members would paint them to the best of their abilities. The Yamanaka would pick and choose which ones they wanted to keep and hang it up in their store. The flowers were beautiful, but they only lasted so long. A painting up on the wall could never wilt though.

And of course, the signatures were small but visible in the bottom corners of the paintings.

And then there was her aunt and uncle, the ones who owned the bakery. Because of the two fairs, they had branched out to the rest of konoha. Sales were decent-but not as good as they could be. That's where the Akimichi came into play. Her aunt had approached the clan head, and asked for some advice to selling their food. As the Akimichi catered to a wide population.

Smelling an excellent opportunity, the matriarch had jump it. With some advice like tips on how to cook, sell, and advertise, sales took off. In the corners of the brown paper bags, the Akimichi and Uchiha symbols stood side-by-side.

The Police force had already worked with the Nara for solving cases, and with that, they had made an alliance with the Ino-Shika-Cho.

But it didn't just end there.

After the initial kat kraze, there was the sudden realization Konoha didn't really have any clinics solely for cats. Except for Neko-baa and the rest of the Uchiha, no one really knew how to take care of their new pets. And the Uchiha weren't capable of taking on such an huge task!

Then the Inuzuka stepped in.

They already had wide scale clinics for their dogs, and in order to be a vet, you had to have vast knowledge. With this truce in the cat-dog war, The Uchiha and Neko-baa set up shop with the help of Tsume and the rest of her clan. There were actual lines outside the cat clinics, people and cats of all shapes and sizes waiting to be checked out. It was extremely successful. Another few weeks of supervision and they could stand of their own. But now, every clinic had in their lobby the Uchiha clan symbol with the Inuzuka symbol right next to it.


	23. Chapter 23

It happened while they were playing at the park.

The cloud of children was so thick Mikoto had given up and told them the spot to come back to when they were done playing. She pushed Sasuke on the swing, and he sat in her lap as they went down the slide. They went up and down on the seesaw, seeing who could kick the highest.

Then she spotted another kid in the park hiding under the play-set. He was wearing a hat to cover his hair and a scarf with goggles. It wasn't so out of place, given it was fall. She was violently reminded of Shino, expect this wasn't him. The kid looked like he wanted to jump in, like he wanted to play, but for some reason he was too afraid.

That didn't stand with Miko. She grabbed Sasuke's hand.

" _Miko, what?"_ Sasuke asked.

 _"Look, he's sad!"_ She pouted.

 _"Let's go!"_ Said a determined Sasuke.

The boy was so focused on the giant groups of kids, he didn't notice them approach.

"Hello!" Miko chirped. Sasuke waved. The boy jumped, then looked at the two like he couldn't quite believe them. She saw the shirt he was wearing, and felt gratified to know he was wearing clothes provided to orphans by the Uchiha.

He shuffled in his crouch, kicking wood chips around.

She offered him her free hand.

"Do you wanna play with us?" Sasuke gave a warm smile and nodded, offering his own hand. He gulped, trembling, before reaching out and grabbing their hands. They pulled him up and then suddenly they were all standing in a circle with hands clasped.

"What do you wanna do first?" She asked.

He twitched, before jerking his head towards the slide.

"We could do a train!" Sasuke said excitedly. The new boy didn't know what a train was, so she explained it to him. Two or more kids sat at the top of the slide, and wrapped their legs around the person in front of them and placed their hands on their shoulders. They stayed connected until they got to the ground.

The boy loved it. He had sat in the middle because he was scared, but once they reached the ground he started laughing hysterically. So they went down again. And again. He didn't talk much, but from what she did get out of his was that he was her age, liked pranks, and was already at the academy!

"You must be very smart!"

He giggled shyly.

They ran around until the park was mostly empty. Mikoto was sitting on a bench and eating an apple, one eye on them, another on her book. She had just shown him the monkey bars and everything was going good.

Until it wasn't.

His finger slipped and he knocked his face before landing harshly. Sasuke ran to Mikoto and she went to see if he was okay. The boy was curled up into a ball and clutching his face, scarf tussled and goggles skewered. It was only for a second, but she caught sight of whiskered cheeks and bright blue watery eyes. She froze before forcing herself into action.

"Are you okay?" She held out her hand.

He flinched.

Mikoto came running with Sasuke not far behind. He wasn't hurt, just startled from the fall. Miko and Sasuke held out their hands and helped him up. It was time to go now and he obviously felt the same. She watched his back as he walked away.

 _"Goodbye, Naruto."_ She whispered.


	24. Chapter 24

She awoke to an angry atmosphere.

No, seething. Someone(s) was very pissed. She sat up only to realize Sasuke had crept into her bed sometime during the night, and had wrapped himself around her arm.

She heard yelling below, from one of her uncles.

"-They completely banned them! A law that was clearly targeted at us!-" Her mothers voice cut in and the conversation dropped to the point where she couldn't make out the words.

But it was more than enough for her heart to start beating rapidly. What did 'us' mean? The Uchiha? Who targeted them? And that ban didn't sound good. And she had never heard her laid-back uncle so angry. He was one of the master cat summons in her clan and from what she remembered he was just as cool as his cats.

Hearing him this mad was genuinely scary.

She clutched onto Sasuke and he mumbled something, turning his face into her stomach. A slamming door could be heard and more people all raising their voices.

What was wrong? She hadn't authorized this!

"THIS IS BULLSHIT!"

She and Sasuke jumped, his snores stopping abruptly. Her father barked sharply and the new person was cut off. They looked at each other and whispered.

 _"What are they mad about?"_

 _"I don't know. Lets find out."_

They crept out of the bed and downstairs. Then pressed their ears to the door.

"The ban was passed by the village elders, who are apparently citing reports of overcrowding and how it's ruining the public face. I have the article right here." They cleared their throats. "As decreed by the village council of elders, Felines will be banned from public spaces. Feline summons will also be banned from training grounds as to not hinder developments-" He tried to continue but a roar of rage swallowed his words.

...What?

A ban on...cats?!

She and Sasuke exchanged confused glances.

"Miko, Sasuke, come out." Fugaku said. They gulped and opened the door.

What seemed like half the clan was crammed in their living room. Her aunts, uncles, cousins twice removed crammed inside. One was standing on top of the couch with a letter in his hand. All of them were upset.

"I knew it was too good to be true!" One of her Aunts said, completely ignoring her and Sasuke. "All this recent success, I knew it was a farce!" Roars of agreement came from some of the Uchiha.

"Now now, this doesn't only effect us. Thousands of people have recently acquired cats." One of her third uncles said once the roars calmed down.

"Yeah, then what's the part with the cat summons about!?" Her aunt screamed back. Instantly the room broke back into chaos. People where getting into each others faces and spitting from the force of their words. Sasuke was saying something but she couldn't hear. The room seemed to be divided. People like her uncle on one side, and people like her aunt on the other.

 **BANG.**

She jumped so hard she bit her lip. Everyone turned to see Mikoto holding two vibrating pots. Her hands were clenched in a white knuckle grip on the handles.

"Arguing amongst ourselves will not accomplish anything. Akira!" She hadn't noticed he was here, but then he emerged from behind her uncle. "Go to Neko-baa, then round up people to visit the cat clinic. Rally the rest of the clan and people in Konoha."

She took a deep breath.

"This doesn't just effect us, and we can gather people to strike back."


	25. Chapter 25

Under Mikoto and Fugaku the Uchiha mobilized.

The Art Institute churned out posters and hung them around the Village. Angry people gathered at the animal clinics and at the steps of the village council.

The village was a hot mess, and when a woman actually got reprimanded for bringing out her orange tabby the people screamed at the ninja.

But, stupidly, there was one thing the Elders had not taken into account. The Uchiha weren't just a part of the police force, they _were_ the police force, and at best gave repeat offenders half-hearted slaps on the wrist. Even non Uchiha members of the force were in on it.

She and Sasuke were under their fathers desk playing with a gray kitten named kibbles who had a cauliflower ear and orange eyes, when a complete tense silence fell over the building. She saw his legs slowly back out. He stood and disappeared.

She grabbed the kitten in her hands. Sasuke lifted the flap under the desk, making a small peephole for both of them to look out of. At first, she saw her cousins and members of the force all...saluting?

She followed the direction of their gaze.

And saw Danzo standing in the middle of the office.

She nearly swallowed her teeth. The single biggest threat to her clan right here. He was surrounded buy four root agents and was speaking to her father.

"It has come to my attention that actions to enforce the cat ban has not been put in place." She noticed there was a piece of cat nip by his foot.

"The police force does what it can. Nothing you say will help the situation." Smirks from around the office. She couldn't help but stare at his bandaged left arm. She so wanted to say 'I could spill everything, old man. I could get you pal, Hurizen on your ass if you don't get the hell out.' But then she'd be dragged to T and I.

Then Sasuke smirked.

 _"What?"_

He smirked again and shushed her. He gently took a squirming kibbles out of her hand and placed him on the floor. Kibbles sniffed the air, and obviously found something he liked, as he toddled onward and out of sight. They crowded the peep-hole and nearly screamed when they saw Kibbles making his way towards the piece of catnip.

Fugaku and Danzo locked eyes, neither looking away.

Officers froze, wanting to scream but also desperately curious.

' _Go Kibbles!"_ They chanted with their eyes. _"You can do it!"_

Sweat trickled down her brow and the brows of several others. Her aunt pumped her fist silently, and a newer officer bit his lip, pushing the kitten forward with his vision.

The root agents had yet to notice the tiny gray kitten who blended in with the shaggy carpet, eyes on the officers.

Kibbles was valiantly fighting on against the harsh tug of the wool carpet on his claws, one dragging step after another.

Her cousin held his fist up to his mouth. Her uncle, the same one from the living room, mouthed 'G _o! Onwards my son!"_

"The Uchiha police force is severely inefficen-"

"MEOW!"

...

The baby cat had attacked the piece of cat nip-right by Danzo's foot. The entire room just stared as the kitten blissfully played, chewing on the catnip and rolling over Danzo's foot.

And then it started hacking.

And coughing.

And choking.

It's back bent and Kibbles threw up. All over Danzo's foot.

A rumble gathered through the room. It built up steam and then the entire office except for Danzo and his child soldiers were in hysterics.

Officers were leaning against the wall, lying on desks and splayed out on the floor-gripped with laughter.

They pointed and hooted at Danzo, banging their fists repeatedly. Never before had a village elder been insulted like this.

Danzo left not two seconds later.

He would not be getting another single word in edgewise.


	26. Chapter 26

The Danzo incident spread far and wide, and now, instead of shouting in anger when discussing the man, people shrieked in laughter.

The story of the heroic kitten spread across the lands. Ninja at training grounds whispered it. Officers went home to their families and retold it in choked voices. It was whispered over counters at the Dango shop and exchanged along with newly forged kunai.

At this point the village elders had holed up inside the council building, refusing to take questions and sending root members to hold back the crowd. It was on the front page-the crowd that was. In a military dictatorship like this, numbers like that were unheard of.

"Send Danzo out, that coward!" One girl had shouted.

And then the Uchiha pulled out the big guns.

Fugaku went straight to the Hokage and told him while she and Sasuke listened in the background, that;

"This is discrimination to the Uchiha. We have been serving Konaha faithfully for decades and have been treated with nothing but suspicion in return. I demand the ban to be rendered ineffective immediately. While it encompasses all cat-owners, the bond between the Uchiha and our summons is vital for the villages protection. "

The Hokage actually looked _guilty_.

He bowed his head and sighed. His pipe tilted as he saw the two kids peeking around the corner, looking all his 60+ years of life.

"I will-"

 _Poof._

In a swirl of leaves, Danzo appeared in the office. Miko and Sasuke ducked behind their father who gave them disapproving glares.

The tension sparked. Both had come for a proposal from the Hokage and who he decided to entertain would effect everyone for years down the road. If he went with Danzo, he would be damning the Uchiha and roughly half of Konoha. If he went with the Uchiha, he would be publicly snubbing his lifelong 'friend' and 'ally'.

Miko and Sasuke peered out from behind Fugaku's legs, wide moon eyes staring up at the Hokage. His gaze hardened.

"Danzo."

That one word vibrated the entire room with it's power.

"By order of the Hokage, I render this ban Ineffective. Immediately. Cease and desist. I am giving you the choice to tell the public yourself instead of me."

Danzo didn't respond.

"You and I both know this ban is doing more harm than good."

Danzo made for the exit, but not before leaning over and saying;

"You were always a soft-hearted fool." And then he was gone. Sasuke gasped in shock at Danzo's rudeness. Nodding to the Hokage respectfully, Fugaku grabbed both of their hands and led them out of the office. But not before Miko threw a wave over her shoulder.

And perhaps there was another thing she should mention.

Kibbles had become the face of the resistance.

The tiny gray kitten with orange eyes and a cauliflower ear had replaced all the other generic cats. The art institute did life size models and they had instantly sold out. Her aunt who owned the kitten had contacted a shirt making company, and an order for three hundred shirts was placed. For a gray kitten with orange eyes and a cauliflower on the front.

She **_made sure_** she and Sasuke got one. She thought she would die if she didn't.

Having heard the story themselves, the shirts were gone almost instantly. People would see each other in the streets with Kibbles shirts and wave. At the clinics a cheer rose whenever someone walked in. Her aunt was having a blast walking around with the actually Kibbles in her hand with a shirt.

People whipped out their Polaroids and got pictures and the Police turned a blind eye. This was all going on at the same time as the crowd protested.

"I love your shirt!" A girl screamed from across the street.

"'Danks!" She chirped back. Orders flooded in and her aunt was making a tidy profit with another thousand shirts being manufactured.

The crowds swelled with Kibbles shirts but then they roared when Danzo appeared at the top of the steps.

Someone screamed to be quiet, and the crowd hushed, waiting for Danzo to speak.

"...The ban was put in place with the best-interest of the village in mind." The crowd stirred but remained silent. "It is unfortunate it had to go this far but as of now." He paused, the entire crowd waiting with baited breath.

"The ban on felines in public will remain-"

Screams of anger drowned him out.

"Bullshit!"

"No way!"

" **ENOUGH!"**

The crowd buzzed.

Then Tsume Inuzuka, clan head of the Dog clan marched towards Danzo through the parted crowd. Two dogs flanking her.

"I was just at the tower. I heard the Hokage." She growled.

The crowd buzzed. What was she talking about?

"He decreed, as of now, the Ban has been rendered ineffective! Rethink what you are going to say. As a dog-person, this cat ban is idiotic!"

Cheers rose.

"You're supposed to do whats best for the people, how is banning practically half of the village best for the people!?" She roared, her two hounds barking.

Screams almost deafening to her.

" _So what do you have to say now!?"_

The crowd chanted in agreement. Tsume walked right up to Danzo, kidnapped slaves forming a protective stance around him.

"... As of now, the Village elders declare the ban ineffective." He said through a stiff jaw.

Cheeres rose from the crowd. It was insane.

A random kid hugged her, a lady opened her purse and two cats jumped out. A hulking man placed a kitten on top of his head like a hat. People ran to the clinics and restaurants. The reporters at the scene wrote down most of what was going on and dashed to the newspaper.

"Party at my place!"

People celebrated all night, throwing impromptu parties, and the dog people were invited. At the biggest one Tsume herself grabbed the mic and threw out the idea of a Cat- Dog festival. Miko wished she thought of that.

That was all great.

But the best part?

Tsume was wearing a Kibbles shirt the entire time.


	27. Motivations

Miko is her name and manipulation is her game.

She was in league of her own when it came to pulling strings, no one was quite on her level-not even that fuck Danzo. She was playing chess with an opponent who didn't know she was-giving her a huge advantage. She was on course to saving the most powerful clan in existence and if that didn't say anything she didn't know what did.

But why?

Why save them? If the massacre did happen she would survive it. Itachi would make sure of that. Why save all these other people?

If your answer was 'Oh, it's because she's a good person!' or 'Because she can!" You'd be wrong. To understand the story you need to understand the character.

Miko is selfish, lazy at her core, callous, jealous, and controlling.

Think about that for a second.

While she is manipulating people for a good cause, she is still toying with people. Willing to put her innocent three year old twin on the front lines. Martyr out her uncles and take advantage of crippled war veterans to set up a power house PR system known as the Art Institute.

And she's jealous. When Sasuke said Itachi's name and Itachi became visibly happy, she wished she was the one who said it first. More recently when Tsume came up with the Cat-Dog festival, she was jealous she didn't think of that idea first.

Laziness was very prominent in her early years. She waited for the attack to happen and even afterwords it took awhile for herself to get in gear. She said so herself 'She should have been listening in-regardless if she understood it or not'.

Miko also constantly wants to be in control. When her uncles were yelling at her house, her first thought was 'I didn't authorized this!' The people she gives power to are all ones she can influence in some way, so no matter what, she stays on top.

But above all?

Miko is selfish. She depended on these people as much as they depended on her. Hinata and Sasuke cling to her and she clings back. Lying to herself, saying she was doing this for Sasuke because she didn't want him to suffer losing his family, but really she just didn't want to lose her family all over again. And she wants to make her life as easy as possible-so seeing as she is a Uchiha helping her clan is the best option.

She was cut off once from everyone she loved and it won't happen again.

But Miko is not a bad person either.

She is passionate, charismatic, caring, clever, and unexpectedly kind.

She recognized something within the Uchiha no one else had even acknowledged before. Art. She was bringing forth a golden age for the clan, stomping down on discrimination and promoting peace with every action.

She recognizes and is humbled she was given a second chance-especially because she was no one in her past life. She is selfish, but only because she has known loss, and clings onto life to save herself, and if that means saving others so be it. She is not afraid of death so much as she is afraid of losing everything again.

She is a lazy person but forces herself to work hard. She includes Sasuke in because she knows he is sensitive and might be overlooked. She provided support for Itachi when he was younger, and gave Naruto his first friends. She saved Hinata from kidnapping and gave the girl self-worth.

When she met Naruto at the park, she didn't recognize him at first-assuming him to be any old kid. So she played with him despite not knowing till the end who he was.

She has all these people at her disposal and endless opportunities for harm-but never takes them. She knows pain and doesn't want that for anyone else.

Except Danzo.

Fuck Danzo.

Overall, Miko is a complex character, which-given her circumstances, is understandable.


	28. Chapter 28

After the end of the Cat-ban, things calmed down a bit.

The parties, she was sure, had been great. She had not been able to attend any because of her age. And not even pouting and stomping her feet had changed their minds. But now-a-days, you could see people with their pets downtown and in the parks and designated areas. Her clan and Kiba's were planning the festival. So that was good.

She and Sasuke had been playing with blocks and Itachi had been out on a mission for a few days now and would be gone for a bit longer.

So when they heard his voice, faint, floating up from downstairs, they froze.

She remembered when she heard her uncle yelling from downstairs and a bad feeling tickled up her spine. They normally would have jumped up by now and jumped him, but weariness and pain in his voice had them still as statues.

It was approaching night when they left her room. Fugaku and Mikoto had went to other parts of the house, leaving the kitchen clear. The back door was open slightly.

"Ouoto? Imouto?" Itachi called softly from the porch. They jumped back, held hands, and walked towards the back.

Itachi was facing away from them head bowed and uneaten dinner in his hands. Something was wrong. They crept on either side of him, Sasuke kicking a box to the side so he could cuddle up to Itachi. She stole a veggie from his plate. But instead of smiling, he didn't even notice.

She and Sasuke exchanged worried glances.

She didn't know how long they sat there, but despite Itachi's inner turmoil, it was...peaceful. There was a light breeze, and the smell from the peach tree carried on it. It was cool, but nothing she couldn't handle by cozying up to Itachi. Sasuke did the same on the other side.

The stars were never this bright back from where she came from.

Konaha was one of the largest cities in Naruto, but it didn't put a dent in the night sky. The constellations were different here for sure, and she delighted trying to find them like the book had shown her.

She had just spotted the _Ninja's Kunai,_ when she felt tugging on her shoulders.

Itachi tugged her with his right arm-pulling her close. He did the same with his left arm. He pressed them into his stomach and chest, both of them partially on his lap, and just held them, thumbs smoothing over chubby cheeks. Sasuke sighed happily and pressed his face into his chest. The beginnings of long bangs were pushed back, and she blinked confusedly.

Why did water drop on her?

Itachi was crying. Tears dripped from his _Sharingan eyes._

He flinched when he saw her moon eyes staring up at his-with the red reflected in them it almost looked liked she had a pair.

Everything was being recorded then.

She leaned up and kissed his cheek, deciding Itachi needed a little reassurance. And who better to do it then his little sister?

"Itachi." No 'Aniki'- she was serious. She cupped his face with chubby hands.

"'Dese change," She tapped under his eyes." But 'dis,- dis is the same, Itachi will always be Aniki." Miko tapped above his heart.

Smiling, she laid her head on his chest and fell asleep.


	29. Chapter 29

At long last the day had arrived.

Miko and Sasuke were joining the academy.

Just thinking of the things they could get up to made her positively _giddy._

"Are you excited to make friends?" Her Mother asked over a charged breakfast.

Oh, was she ever. She shot a rice filled grin back at her. In a twist that was drastically different from canon, almost the entire clan was turning up. Itachi was supposed to be joining ANBU by now, but that seemed to be delayed. With his skill set, it was only a matter of time, but she recalled Fugaku originally didn't want to go to the ceremony because Itachi was being initiated into ANBU.

She was pretty sure it was because of how much closer they were to her and Sasuke. But maybe it also had to do with Mikoto taking him to see Inochi.

And the fact that whatever happened to Itachi was was worse than in canon. Sasuke's childhood was always shady, so she couldn't tell or not if the night terrors were canon. It made sense if they were. One night, when she and Sasuke fell asleep in her room, she was startled out of sleep when something pinged on the edge of her senses. As she stated, it was possible to detect irregularities in chakra(especially with the Sharingan), which was why she didn't like using her senses, (and well, maybe because the nine-tails traumatized her a bit) but she sensed Itachi creeping down the hall.

His chakra was fluctuating wildly, in clear emotional distress. He stood right outside their door for the longest time before opening it. She pretended to be asleep. She felt his breath hover over their faces, like how he used to when they were babies.

He placed one, then two kisses on their cheeks.

"Miko! Get ready!"

"HAI!" She snapped out of her stupor and bolted to her room. She had all her supplies ready. Extra food to endear Choji, her covered book on shogi, that one plushie Ino loved and all her school supplies. Which wasn't much.

The Uchiha clan compound was huge, but the majority of the Uchiha were actually dispersed around the village. There was no 'Uchiha' town, that came later when Danzo(Bitch) had them all grouped in one place-kinda like shooting fish in a barrel. But the head house was always busy. Especially today.

"Congratulations!"

"Were so happy for you!"

"Number ones right here!"

"Will there be an after-party?"

That last one was kinda out of left field, but it was looking more and more possible. When they finally left the house, all they needed was a location.

Akira-that amazing sweet, smart, talented man- volunteered his house.

The walk to the academy was accompanied by many residents shouting their congratulations, or thanking the police force, complemented the Art Institute, or misc.

She they arrived they couldn't even squeeze all the members inside. They had to stand outside. Itachi, Fugaku and Mikoto watched proudly as they walked to their seats. She immediately noticed kids from around the village, who bought at their stores, or who had a parent were in the police force, or who owned a cat, or she played with at the park at the park. She saw the rookie nine too.

The point was, she was shaping up to be miss popular.

OHHHHHH! She had forgotten about the Konoha eleven! She actually rubbed her hands together.

The murmuring died down when the Hokage took the stage. Sasuke shimmied with excitement next to her. he cleared his throat and spoke. And while no doubt what he said was grand-she zoned out.

Like, entered another dimension zoned out.

When earth shattering clapping reached her ears she snapped back a looked around, the ceremony was over and she had missed it.

Oh well.


	30. Chapter 30

It was just as she had predicted.

Children flocked to her. She was everyones friend, and the academy was beyond easy, having already learned all the math they taught, and read every single one of Itachi's academy textbooks.

She had studied her butt off at home for exactly this reason-to free herself up for pr.

And,

To make new _friends._

She had never seen Sakura before until the ceremony speech, and had zoned out staring at her hair. She would become extremely powerful later on, and even before the series was top of the class and one of the only people 'decent' to Naruto.

Sasuke squinted suspiciously up at her.

 _"What are you doin now?"_ he grumbled.

Sasuke had been cranky ever since the academy started. Maybe it was because he couldn't sleep in anymore, maybe it was because Miko's attention wasn't solely on him anymore, and maybe it was because they couldn't see their family until the academy was over.

Sakura, who was hiding behind her, clenched the back of her dress.

It had been by turns both easier and harder than had had initially thought befriending her. Sakura was desperate for friendship and looked kindly on anyone who was kind to her-despite their intentions. Miko knew this first hand.

But she was hesitant to get close to anybody, suspicious-and rightfully so. It's not like Miko had any nefarious deeds planned for her, but she would be using her. Sakura was scared of getting hurt and that was understandable.

But her biggest selling point?

Sakura had a crush on Sasuke. And she was Sasuke's sister.

It wasn't as big as it would be later in the academy, but it was clear she admired him.

"You two be friends." She said, pushing Sakura down next to Sasuke. They regarded each other before Sasuke crossed his arms.

"H-hello." Sakura poked her fingers together.

"Hello."

"Oh! Is that the history of Konoha? I read it and thought it to be wonderful!" Sasuke had borrowed it from Itachi to read when he got bored.

Sasuke turned fully to face her, uncrossing his arms.

"You read this?"

Miko beamed. They were getting along splendidly. She stood up to leave, the two paying her no mind as they discussed Tobirama and the history of the police force.

The grass cleared in front of her as kids scrambled out of her way. Perhaps she should explain? Miko and Ino had been labeled as the two most popular girls in their grade. Instead of the power struggle that would have normally resumed, they shared it. They had been amazing friends before (thanks to the meetings and play dates) and both saw no reason to quit.

The nicknames going around for them respectively were Queen-bee for Miko due to her honey talking tongue, and Ice-Queen for Ino- presumably for her eyes, because she had a very bubbly personality. Fantastic. When the two of them paired up, people ducked and covered.

But perhaps the most notable of all?

Her admirers.

She had plenty, due to the fact she was taking after Mikoto and she was gorgeous. But there was a person who admired her who she wasn't too surprised about. Shikamaru. She even played a bit of shogi, winning a few of the rounds. But that could have been because she had purposefully kissed him on the cheek beforehand.

But the other one?

Naruto.

 _Naruto._

She hoped Sasuke would never catch wind of this or else that rivalry would never end.

It might have started in the park, when she had unknowingly played with him. Or on the first day, when she had apologized for bumping into him. or when she had smiled at him-seeing one of the shirts the Uchiha donated to the orphanages. At any rate, he was always there, peeking around a classroom door, watching her during a history discussion, or hiding behind a tree during recess-looking like he wanted to asked her to play again.

It would be a long couple of years.


	31. Chapter 31

During class one day, Iruka for whatever reason was running late and they were left alone-with no teacher.

Mayhem.

Not really, the kids were quite loud however. Naruto had already started his prank-pulling and had obviously realized this was a pristine opportunity to pull some tricks. In hopes of impressing her, he had taken Iruka's chalk and rigged it up to the desk drawers, so when he opened it to get the attendance books it would explode.

He looked hopefully Miko's way and beamed when she smiled.

Iruka walked in flustered and red-faced.

"Sit down! I need to take attendance!" Everyone scrambled for a seat. He reached for the drawer.

"HAHAHAH!" The class, in turns, laughed and gasped in surprise. Iruka was rabid in chewing out Naruto, perhaps a bit too harshly. She fucking beamed as an glorious idea hit her.

At first, she was hesitant to approach Naruto. While he would be very helpful in the future, that was the future and right now being seen with him would damage her reputation-and thus the Uchiha. Which is why despite being at the academy together, she had never treated him bad, but with a warm indifference, a smile and a wave was all.

But she didn't have to be close to use him.

A Grinch smile curled behind a curtain of curls.

She could use these pranks of his.

Point him in the right direction and plug her ears. She had heard her cousins complaining about Naruto, and what a pain his pranks were. This was a potent, untapped resource. And come on! A kid who was emotional dependent, willing to do anything to be accepted, and had a crush on her? He was begging to be manipulated!

So it was settled. At lunch, she would approach him.

Time dragged now that she made up her mind. When the bell finally rang, she was the first one out. She ran to Naruto's spot in the back. Kids steered clear of here so she would be good. She hunkered into the bushes.

When Naruto finally come, he was lost in thought. He probably got a detention again.

"Psst! Hey!"

"WHA- Whose there!? A ghost!"

"It's me, Miko." She stepped out.

Naruto blushed and stuttered.

"O-oh h-hey, Umm."

"Call me Miko-chan."

"Oo-ookay, Miko-chan." He blushed.

"I saw that prank of yours. It was pretty clever." She complemented. He stuttered out what might have been a thanks, eyes darting to her and then the grass.

"But you wanna know what could be better?"

"What? Tell me tell me!" He squealed.

She allowed a smirk before getting down to business. She went over the details- the police force's patrols, hot-spots, people to prank and when. She told him strategies(Some she learned from Shikamaru) and explained them to him. While not an academic Naruto adored her the way Hinata adored him, so he absorbed this like a sponge.

Confused?

Let her explain.

By pranking certain people, they would be forced to interact with the police force-who were still majority Uchiha. When it came to trivial things like pranks normally less experienced officers would go along, but when it came to Naruto an Uchiha officer was always sent. Her thinking was to force them to interact more, it was a way to bring the Police and the people even closer together.

And she could target anti-Uchiha citizens, send a message to them. Hell, with Naruto's skill, she could go for Xenophobic Uchiha too. He could do things she wouldn't be able to in case it ruined her rep.

Walking home from school today, Itachi sensed her smugness.

"What did you do, Miko-chan?" She smirked.

It took two weeks to see the fruits of Naruto's labor- when an young Uchiha officer-a certain somebody named Akira-got trapped in a prank with a lady store owner, he had stuttered as he tried to untie himself, and the lady laughed, saying it was alright. He then asked her on a date, after all was said and done. She had given Naruto a kiss after she heard Fugaku tell Mikoto. Naruto did this many more times, and then suddenly, police officers-many of who were Uchiha- were going on dates with civilians.

Word got out that Queen-bee didn't hate Naruto and she did nothing to discourage this. So maybe, Naruto got a few less sneers, and a few almost smiles as he walked down the halls.

~Extra~

She grinned cheekily as she walked through the halls. Most boys blushed, some waved, girls tittered hello and she waved back. But she was a girl with a goal in mind. She arrived in the almost empty classroom, homemade bento box with all their favorites inside. She straightened her shirt with a gray kitten with orange eyes and a cauliflower ear and stared at the very same person who she had made it for. She remembered making it.

 _"Miko, who is this for?" Her father asked._

 _"For someone who helped me. A thank you."_

 _"Ah."_

 _Her mother had helped, wrapping it nicely before she went to the academy._

She took a deep breath and walked to their slumped over form.

"Hello Shikamaru." She chirped.

The boy jumped, eyes peeling open. For a second he though he was still dreaming, because what looked like an angel was standing over him, with a sweet grin.

"Oh, Miko, hey." He said, eyes wide and not looking at all upset for being awoken or bothered.

"I made this for you-as a thank you! Thank you!" She placed the box right in front of him, then placed a kiss on his cheek.

Unable to respond, Shikamaru just gaped.

She skipped away, intent on braiding Ino's pretty hair before class.

"...W-what did I d-do?" He gasped.

Not that he was complaining-he just wanted to do it again.


	32. Chapter 32

It was during one of her many plotting sessions mid-class when she figured out Itachi. She leaned back, wearing her kibbles shirt for the fifth time in a row.

Or rather, why he wasn't in ANBU.

It was a question that had been haunting her for awhile now, due to it's importance.

In canon, he was signed up right away by Fugaku. It was a move to appease the clan elders, show Konoha the Uchiha were strong, and, most importantly, to use Itachi as a _spy_. The fact that Itachi had not joined yet was a sign that he was not needed as a spy, and thus, the Uchiha weren't currently planning a coup. Because if they were, Itachi would have been rushed into ANBU by now instead of getting treatment from Ino's father through their new connections.

With her actions and the revival of the clan's spirit and influence, the clan elders have been mostly appeased. Konoha knows the Uchiha are strong and wealthy. Conditions are brighter then they ever were in canon and that had contributed to no plans for a coup.

That was the best news she had heard in an entire fucking lifetime. Literally.

What had seemed like an impossible insurmountable task from the very beginning was now doable, and in fact halfway complete. That idea of the village elders, of grouping the Uchiha all in one place was rendered impossible by her and her parents machinations. The Uchiha were effectively spread all over the village, claiming stakes in the animal clinics, opening stores of their own, selling food like her Aunt and Uncle, or living permanently at the art institute like a few of her relatives were-who had just purchased the building.

To uproot that would be damn near impossible, even more so with all the business ties they had to other clans. It was her goal in the first place, something she had been working relentlessly at for years, and the feeling of actually succeeding when she failed so bad the last time she actually died left a tingle in her hands.

Now all they had to do was meet the village in the middle.

Which would be fucking impossible with Danzo. Bitch.

It was noticeable the effort he put into approving anything that would disadvantage the Uchiha. He had an edge over her in the fact her clan wasn't really in politics, none of them were councilpersons. In fact non of the clans were really into politics. The only politics ninja had besides protecting the village was the Hokage. The council was mostly for civilians and rules and regulations concerning them. Civilians did make up the majority of the population and a sizable portion of the village's finance after all.

But...the Uchiha clan had civilians. There were no laws against a clan civilian running. Her Aunt had often complained about the outdated regulations when selling her food. Wouldn't it be funny if she went over after school with Sasuke and Itachi and accidentally slipped that idea while there?

Clan civilians were stuck in a middle ground,throughout all the clans. Not really represented in any sense of the word. It would be interesting to see what would happen.

But maybe she shouldn't. It would be seen as a power grab by a lot of people, and no doubt Danzo would exploit that. She would open the floodgates to other clans desperately trying to get councilpersons elected and create a cesspool of chaos.

It would undo most if not all of her work in a brutal competition.

So no. She would not slip that idea. But it was still something to consider...like, maybe a civilan tied to the Uchiha, but not actually a Uchiha?

"MIKO!"

"Ouch!" An eraser hit her head.

She had zoned out. Again.

The class giggled at her again. They all though it was hilarious whenever she got chewed out.


	33. Chapter 33

She needed to do something about Danzo. Now.

But she needed evidence to do it and bring it up to her father in a way that wouldn't make her suspicious in the first place. Plus the man covered his ass like no one else. The thing that would get Danzo the most was the kidnapping of orphaned children.

But only recently did the village start keeping records of their own. With the turmoil of war and the massive influx of children in between war times, then the destruction of orphanages had made it massively difficult to prove anything.

The only really started keeping hard records after the third war was over. Which was not too long ago.

The fact remained she was going to a ninja academy, with plenty of orphaned kids just waiting to be friends with her and tell her their life stories.

Orphans were the easiest to spot. They were the try-hards, the kids with something to prove. They also almost always cried when someone talked about their family too.

After the fifth kid (who was wearing a cat shirt from the Uchiha) she realized she needed to rethink her game. The kids in her grade were too young and dense to really notice a kid going missing. They were just one face among many of kids that nobody really cared about until the Uchiha came along and put clothes on their backs. Which was why they were so willing to talk to her probably.

The fact was, she needed a kid from an older grade level.

They had lunch with all the grades on the last day before the weekend.

This would be the best moment to speak with either Rock Lee or Tenten. Probably Tenten, no offense but she was a bit smarter.

Since it was Monday, she waved to her in the halls. She didn't get a wave back.

The next day she waved again and was delighted when Tenten lifted her fingers in return.

The day after she grined and Tenten grinned back.

The fourth day they did all that and said hello.

On Friday, Miko asked if they could play together at lunch. She said yes.

Miko skipped to class, said her routine good-mornings and hellos, and sat down. When the bell rang halfway through the school-day, she jumped up and bolted outside and waited by the thorn bushes. Kids streamed out like a broken dam, but no Tenten. Maybe she was just taking her time?

The fact was, after sitting her for awhile, lunch was almost halfway over. She had already rejected six kids from playing including her brother, who was pushing Sakura on the swings.

She thought Tenten was cool!

She brushed her butt off and decided to investigate. As she walked over to the entrance, stepping on a dropped cracker, she dipped into a conversation between some of the older kids.

"-Yeah, there was a lot of blood-"

"-You think she's okay-"

Hm. That sounded like it might be of importance. Instead of going to the older kids classrooms, she made a hard left to the nurses office. The halls were weird without kids grouped together or Sensei's standing in the corners. Her sandals thunked loudly on the wooden floors. At the first aid sign, she took a left.

A man with green chakra held Tenten's hand in his hands. There was a small but noticeable pool of blood on the floor underneath their clasped appendages. She remained quiet, not wanting to disturb the delicate process.

The nurse pulled back.

"Okay, it's all healed now. Stay here for a little bit and then i'll let you go."

"But my-"

"Five more minutes."

His tone left no room for arguments. She slumped over sadly, buns flopping.

"Hey." Miko stepped into the room quietly.

Tenten's head shot up. She gasped in surprise when she saw Miko standing in the door with an uncharacteristically somber look on her face.

"Miko! I-I thought-"

"Is your hand okay? I was worried when you didn't show up." Tenten flinched, grabbing her hand.

"Yeah, it's fine. We had kunai training today and well, it slipped."

"Happens to the best of us."

"Sorry about lunch today, Miko."

"Nah, it cool. I just wanted to ask you something though. Wanna come over to my house this weekend?"

Tenten gaped, and rightfully so. Almost nobody except Hinata and the rest of the future rookie nine got to go.

"I can't. I need to practice throwing."

"We have entire training grounds. And my brother is a really good ninja who can teach us. " A slow smile spread across Tenten's face at that, and the gleam of a dream was in the corner of her eyes.

"Okay. That would be nice."

Miko sensed Tenten wasn't done yet, so held off a bit longer. As was rewarded for her patience.

"...You know, no ones ever actually cared enough to check up on me and see if I was alright." Tenten murmured.

Miko was stunned into silence. She had not been expecting that twist.

The bell rang, and they both scrambled off to class.

"Meet me by the school entrance after school!" Miko shouted after her.


	34. Chapter 34

Miko had set everything up so that she wasn't a lynch-pin.

She didn't want everything depending on her, which was why she made sure the Art Institute and The Police Force could be self sustaining-so she could focus on other things. Like Tenten.

She was hopping in place waiting for Itachi to get there. She had already filled Sasuke in with rushed English. He had deadass rolled his eyes at her and turned away into his book, one Sakura gave him to read about Chakra.

When she saw Tenten approaching in the distance, she jumped for joy, waving both hands around her head rapidly.

When Itachi came not a couple minutes later, he was attacked with choreographed doe-eyes. Tenten was wide-eyed walking to the clan head's house. They lived in the richer parts of Konoha- a far cry from Tenten's run down apartment. Itachi went in ahead to ask permission and she was left there with ants in her pants. When he came back and nodded, she all but dragged Tenten inside.

Introductions were pleasant enough, but she needed to get down to business. With a thank you, she dragged her new friend to her room and showed her all her cool ninja stuff. Tenten was impressed. They cornered Itachi and he showed them a couple ways to throw kunai then coached them for a bit. Tenten was good before, but now she was so good she impressed her father when he walked past, Fugaku giving both of them an approving nod. And she was better than her, and while she didn't like that she could live with it.

And that was all good.

But when she befriended Tenten she had an ulterior motive in mind.

When Tenten told her her innermost secret(How she wanted to be just like Tsunade) She knew it was time to make her move.

Her parents were out again-another multi-clan meeting of their own invention. Sasuke was out with Sakura petting her new kitten, and Itachi went for a therapy session. Just to be sure, she checked her senses. It was just them. She kept it on, for she could see fluctuations when someone was lying and needed to hear what Tenten had to say.

She eased into the conversation, asking cloaked questions about her time in the orphanage.

She learned about things she already knew, and things she didn't. But still no missing kids. She learned about adoptions and listened closely-but nothing suspicious. She was just about to give up when Tenten got really quiet, and her chakra curled up as small as possible.

"Some of the kids...we were told they were adopted, but, you'd always see adopted kids around the village, or see their new parents coming to pick them up. But I never saw Misa again. She was my first friend, and always so smart-just like you." Tenten whispered.

Jackpot.

She listened in for another hour as these repressed thoughts and feelings rushed out. Rumors spread through the orphan community, that if you misbehaved, the boogeyman would snatch you up at night and you'd never be seen again. Kids were terrified because there was actually truth to this.

This Misa girl wasn't the only kid Tenten knew of who went missing like that. A couple of others had. It was part of the reason so many orphan kids joined the academy-you were harder to kidnap when you were on record.

She thanked Tenten, let her know she always had Miko, and walked her home with one of her cousins.

If only there were records of the kids. Ones that weren't tampered with by the government, cause you can bet whatever is being recorded is being screened by Danzo. Even after the third war. She needed reliable records taken independently from the-

She dropped her glass.

Oh my god.

She _ran_ to her uncles house, the one who was in her living room the day of the cat-ban. The one who was in charge of the charity that passed out clothes and food to orphanages.

The one that she knew kept records.

She knocked on the door, trying not to be frantic about it.

"Oh hey, Miko!"

She explained her situation to him, going under the guise that she had orphaned friends and wanted to know who got some of the clothes. He had welcomed her in, showing her to the backroom. The backroom with boxes of beautiful records. It was a Saturday, and she had all night long baby.

She scanned the files and after an half hour at it, noticed kids who suspiciously dropped off the map, ghost children who were there one day on the list of children who had received, then suddenly gone on the next list, no check marks saying they were adopted. On the bottom left corner of page three she spotted Misa's name-with no check mark saying she was adopted.

Fuck she was going to nut.

Just kidding.

She adopted a confused expression, then called her uncle over.

"This is so strange, uncle! Look at these kids? Where did they go?"

His face darkened into a serious expression, muttering how it was impossible to tamper with these files, as he himself put jutsu's on them. Instead of putting the files back, he put them on his person, proclaiming he would look into it, and then check the Villages.

When her father and mother got home later, she launched into the usual retelling of her day, except, not cheerful or peppy. She said 'Why isn't that strange what Tenten said about the boogeymen, father?' and 'Tenten had a friend named Misa...' or 'I wanted to know which of my friends got clothes, but me and uncle noticed something funny, father...' and 'Why do you think this is happening, father?'

By the end of it, his face was shadowed, listening and digesting every word she said.

If the next day, her Uncle and Father went straight to the Hokage files in hand...

Well, that had nothing to do with her, really.

And if the police force was suddenly turning the village upside down looking for ghost children, she was lost.

And if they were asking her to get her friend, Tenten, well...

She had no idea why.


	35. Chapter 35-Aftermath of 34

Things went downhill quickly.

Kidding!

If anything things were looking up! Danzo wasn't on the offensive anymore, as attacking the very people trying to find the missing children he stole would cast even more suspicion on him.

Of course, no one could prove it was him. All they could prove from eyewitness accounts and the records from her uncle was that some Konoha kids were defiantly missing.

But those records proved one more thing; Some one was tampering with the official records.

Yeah, boo! Big deal, we know that, Miko.

Shhhhhh...

The point is, the Konoha shinobi didn't know that. Councilpeople didn't know that. Almost everybody else didn't know that. It means that you can't trust your own village. What else are they hiding? In one night, she had turned the village up on it's head. The Hokage had tried to keep it a secret of course, but sometime between when she walked Tenten home, found out, told her uncle, told her father, and them telling the Hokage, somebody let it slip.

And the heroes riding in on white horses to save the day?

The Uchiha.

The Police Force, working day and night, the very same people who noticed this in the first place. Surely they could be trusted to protect them!

She used her senses to drop in on her fathers conversations. The Hokage had been caught off guard by this. The Hokage knew it was Danzo, but a move against him this quickly would only leave people to conclude it was Danzo, thus upending the trust between the village and it's people even further-past a tipping point. Danzo was saved by the very thing that was destroying him-the public.

He had a limited time(Give or take two years) only before either the Police force dug up enough evidence or when the Hokage made his move, and cornered animals are always the ones who lash out.

So,

Danzo,

"..."

...Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock, Tick Tock.

Your move, creep.


	36. Chapter 36

As she said, Danzo had about two years, give or take.

He covered his ass like no one else, not leaving a trail or scent to follow. Be assured with the Police force on the case they would dig up something-eventually. These mysterious disappearances(without a trace) rather than an obvious kidnapping only fueled the panic, as it meant who ever kidnapped them were powerful ninja-and part of the government or ties in the government due to the altered records.

Yeah, she was bad.

But what surprised her was the fervor in which her father threw himself into the case. He always dedicated time to every problem that came to the Force, but this was next level with the kidnappings. Maybe it had to do with her almost being kidnapped herself?

But after a few weeks the hysteria died down a bit. Donations poured into the charities they were running, as well as compliments. But there was still something Danzo had the upper hand in. The political arena! He had dramatically toned it down, but now he was using the missing children as an excuse to muzzle the Uchiha!

Those strict regulations her Aunt complained about? Danzo vetoed or whatever the updated ones.

Her cousins want to go at a certain time to train? Have always gone at that time? No genin unsupervised at the ground past certain time-because of the kidnappings.

Sure, it was a lot less obvious than before, but even now he was still doing little things like that. Suddenly all the Art Institute shipments needed to be inspected as they might be a safety hazard, and oops if some of the pieces got broken! Danzo was scared of their growing influence-and rightfully so!

And speaking of the Art Institute...

"Miko, pass the needle tool, will you?" Akira asked her.

"Sure." She reached over from her piece and handed him the tool.

A word on the Art Institute.

It hasn't been around for very long, but in the almost two years it's been stationed downtown it's become an icon. People recognize the painted windows, colorful tarps, and the viewing deck where an artist could go to clear their head and stare at the village. The building used to be separated into four, but once the land lord saw how great business was-he sold the entire thing to them.

The building stuck out, it being red brick as to prevent a fire. It was also one of the tallest around except for the Hokage tower, due to almost all other nearby buildings being demolished due to the slump cause by the third war. Those lots were even being considered to be bought up by the clan-maybe make nice gardens for a tourist trap. Konoha's economy still wasn't the greatest, but they certainly helped.

And then the design inside was absolutely genius. The first floor was at the front a gift shop to attract eyes with colorful pieces and Kibbles shirts for sale, which smoothly transitioned to advertisements and art tutorships. The back half of the shop was supplies and little cut off rooms where you could watch newbies work. Basically one genius add.

The second floor was where shit got serious. It was where all the Acrylic paints and fresh clay was stored, glazes, where the clean canvasses were. Where the experienced talented artists all did there work. Soft music was almost always playing over installed speakers. The head's office was in the back(Akira's).

The third floor was even more specialized. Blow torches and the kilns were here. It was almost always darkened, and doubled for storage on the other side.

The fourth floor was where the residents lived. Permanently. They had quartered it off and installed walls for separate rooms. There was even a kitchen and two bathrooms. The relatives who lived here were drop dead serious about the Institute. The balcony was also here on the fourth floor. It was everyone's dream at the art institute to be able to one day go on the balcony.

But it was reserved only for a few very important people.

Like her.

"Be careful Miko, your hair clip will go over the edge." Akira chuckled as her curls popped out. He reached over, putting his clay pot down and plucking it from the edge. He curled up his fist and brought it to her-uncurling his hand.

"Here you go Missy."

"Thanks."

Akira was a man of his early twenties. And a veteran of two wars. Pretty messed up, huh? He thought so too, falling in a state of extreme depression and PTSD. Ino's clan couldn't help him much, and the same with some of their other relatives, so Akira gathered everyone at his house and started a circle. Speaking of which, Ino's clan officially adopted the practice into their therapies. Reportedly, the number of suicides has went down, not to mention the mental state of Konoha's ninja has been improved overall.

She remembered the man not two years ago, with purple eyebags and a slumped posture. The good humored man in front of her could have almost been a different person. He was good natured guy. He was bright and lively, saying hello to passerby's in the street and handling situations at the Police Force with care.

Not to mention he was quite good looking, with a strong jaw, sharp nose, and warm brown eyes.

The Art Institute would have been impossible without him. And that was the highest complement from Miko, who quite literally lived and breathed the impossible.

They worked in silence for a bit.

"Thats a pretty big Shogi piece."

"It's for a friend at the academy." She responded.

"Ah a _friend._ Of course."

"You're just like Ino!" She scowled.

He tossed his head back and laughed, white teeth gleaming and scar on his eyebrow rippling.

"That reminds me. Miko, I asked you here to ask you something. Something that would mean a lot to me." Akira put down his piece. She looked at him as if to say 'go on'.

"Well... you know that one lady who I was sent to help? The one where I got us trapped in a prank a half a year ago?"

She nodded. How could she not? It was her fault.

"I asked her to Marry me. And she said yes!" Akira squealed.

She screamed in shock.

"I'm so happy for you! Where was it? How did you do it!?" She asked frantically.

"Geeze louie, calm down!" He laughed joyfully. "I'll tell you all about it later. I need to ask you something."

She looked on apprehensively.

"No need for that face! You're not in trouble hun. I just wanted to ask, if you wanted to be the flower girl?"

"..."

"YES!" She tackled him in a hug, hair clip flying over the side. She peppered his face in kisses, excited beyond belief. Things calmed down after that, and they righted themselves.

"Better not do that around my fiancé, Miko." His eyes twinkled.

She kicked his leg.

"Tell me!"

"Keep your socks on! It went like this..."


	37. Chapter 37

It was all she could talk about at the academy.

Akira had gone public with his marriage plans and it had the entire town in a tizzy. It was all _anyone_ could talk about. She heard it at the Academy, shopping with her mother, or just going to the training grounds.

Part of the reason it was so big was because of Akira and the lady-Suzu. Akira was one of the most popular Uchiha in the entire clan. He was kind, charismatic, and had an amazing sense of humor. His work for the Police Force was important and he put his heart into every case. He was also the rather handsome face of the institute, and a lot of the work was his.

And Suzu. What a gal. She was the store owner that Naruto pranked. Akira just happened to be sent. She was a fire spitting lady, not taking nothing from no one and a bit aggressive-almost the exact opposite of Akira. But she had a kind heart and even better cooking skills. She had one of the most popular restaurants in all of Konoha, regularly working with the Akimachi at food fairs. And kids eat free on Fridays so this chick checked out in her book.

And she was also really hot in her own right. Plump lips and a mole on her cheek, long wavy mint green hair.

The two of them together with their respective establishments, public appearances, and just their appearances in general made them the very definition of a power-couple.

There was even a small article in the Konoha Gazette!

And she would tell anyone that would listen she was the flower girl.

"-And i'm not sure what flowers were using, but Ino's family is sorting it out. I think I'll wear a dress to match it-"

"-We know!" Kiba cut her off, shoving his face with jerky.

Hinata giggled, hugging her knees. Ino was busy daydreaming about flower arrangements to her left, bento half eaten.

It was recess/lunch on Friday so it meant all the kids from all the classes all went onto the playground. Tenten was cleaning her fingernails with her senbon. Naruto was eating a bento Miko had made for him. Shika had curled up next to her-not unlike a cat- and was napping. Choji chowed down on chips, and Shino was checking out a cicada.

Oh, Sasuke and Sakura were being nerds and taking turns reading a book out loud. Since this was before the massacre (which she would prevent) Sasuke wasn't a little traumatized asshole. He was bubbly and smiled often. A bit insecure but had his own strengths. He was also top of the class.

Meanwhile, Sakura was shy, but otherwise cheerful girl who smiled at anyone who she was comfortable with. She was insecure sometimes about her forehead and being a civilian, but she was top of the class.

Otherwise almost exactly like Sasuke. The similarity between the two was uncanny. The made fast friends and Sakura's crush mostly faded out.

Miko herself wasn't top of the class, taking a leaf out of Shika's book and staring off into space, plots whirring around in her head a mile a minute. Those spots were rightfully Sasuke's and Sakura's.

The were stationed under their oak tree, the one with the swing.

"-I met Suzu awhile ago, she's really cool too. She gave me free food-"

"Free Food!?" Choji shouted.

"Yeah! it's Friday so kids eat free. Lets go!"

This lunch was the longest, lasting about an hour before the bell released them, so they snuck out through the bushed. Shika had be reluctant to move, but she had convinced him.

"Shika, please?" She batted her eyes, bringing her face up close to his.

"T-troublesome..."

Suzu's place was hopping. People flooding in to give congratulations and to buy lunch. She saw a few of the villages most prominent people here.

"Miko! How's my future in-law?"

"Hungry!"

"Well what am I supposed to do about that?" She cackled. "Just kidding, round up your posse!"

Delicious as usual.


	38. Chapter 38

The day had arrived.

Weeks of planning and prep that had thrown the bride and groom. They had initially thought it would have been a small family thing, but when you run two of the most prestigious buildings in Konoha, people show up.

 _People show up._

By the hundreds. They had to call in the Akimichi, her aunt and uncle, and Suzu's restaurant to have enough food. Suzu's family showed up. (Suzu was a second cousin to Sakura!) Council people who frequented the restaurant showed up, new artists showed up. Half of the entire force showed up. Kakashi Hatake showed up and she screamed in excitement. Naruto showed up, a personal invitation from Suzu as a thank you for bringing them together and if that doesn't say anything about her character...

At this point, they made it a public event and moved the location to the Uchiha's biggest training ground. A bunch of kids from school showed up. People who read the newspaper article showed up. At this point she gave up trying to count them all. The chatter was loud and extensive but filled with excitement.

Because the more the merrier.

The oak trees swayed in the breeze of a near cloudless day. The white tents stood strong and lovely draped with mint green and white flowers. Supplied by Ino's family of course.

Her father was laughing with some of the officers. Her mother was talking with some of the ladies from Shika's clan. People of all different creeds and backgrounds were hear today. A civilian girl laughed at Shisui's joke, some desk nin were crowded around the real Kibbles, petting him. What a show-stealer.

And then the Hokage arrived.

He was dressed in his robes as usual, his pipe in hand. He smiled and waved and grinned as Fugaku came over to say hello. She couldn't hear what was being said, but the smile on her fathers face sealed the deal.

She took a deep breath before dipping into her senses. She was overwhelmed in seconds-in the best way possible. So many people here and all of them were excited beyond belief. They couldn't wait to see the bride, and have some of the undoubtedly free food. Some were ready to burst with joy, and others thought the decorations were beautiful. It was the best vibes she had ever felt-ever. A professional photographer, one who had gained membership at the Institute, had volunteered to take photos and was currently standing in the back.

No bad apples in this bunch.

And then Akira appeared. He looked like a model with his hair combed back and light green classy dress suit. His face was clear and glowing, his grin brighter than the sun.

People rushed over to offer congratulations to him, love thrumming off of his chakra in waves. She felt her pores cleanse themselves. This was such a turn from the depression she felt two years ago.

Akira was alive.

She grinned, the atmosphere literally infectious. But then the conversation died down, and everyone got to their seats. She shuffled into position, white dress dusting the grass and green flowers at hand in her basket.

Soft music was picked up by the band, spreading out over the now nearly silent crowd. All eyes on her in the back. Her heart thrummed in her throat as she took a deep breath.

And stepped forward.

She tossed a handful that was carried into the crowd by the breeze. She tossed a handful towards Ino, showering her family. She smiled from ear to ear as she did so, dark curly hair braided with mint green roses.

She laughed as she caught a few on the Hokage's hat, the crowd laughing softly and giggled when one landed in Shika's open mouth. Sasuke walked carefully behind her, carrying a ring with him.

And then there was her father. He was sitting in the front row, and she was approaching the end of the aisle where she would go to stand next to her mother and the other bridesmaids. He looked on proudly, a smile on his normally stoic face.

She saved the last handful for him.

She knew her time was up when the heads turned away and gasps rose from the crowd. Suzu was arm-in-arm with one of Akira's close uncles, walking down the aisle. Not a single eye wasn't on the stunning woman-a masterpiece, Akira had called her.

Tasteful makeup, sparkling green eyes that matched a green rose pinned to her bosom. Mint hair tumbled over one shoulder like a waterfall, and a flowing white dress with a tint of mint rippled in the breeze. The most beautiful thing about her was the smile curled where a humored smirk normally was.

Everyone had eyes for her-but her sight was only on the man with warm brown eyes.

She floated as if in some dream. When she finally made it to the alter, she let go and walked up the wooden steps by herself.

Akira held out his hand to Suzu. When she took it everyone let out a sigh. He helped her up as the vows were initiated and Miko couldn't help but think this wedding was bigger than the amassed people. This wedding was symbolic, the love that triumphed over social boundaries, it giving way to something beautiful. Two people who were unlikely to ever meet, suddenly looking into each others eyes like they could see the entire world.

Two people, who personified not the only the unification of two loves, but the unification of the Village and the Uchiha. Meeting in the middle. This, this was progress in it's purest form, _love trumping hate_.

Tears fell from her eyes. Akira was an amazing man.

" _I do._ "

" _I do._ "

They leaned over, kissing on the lips and eyes sliding shut. The crowd abruptly burst into deafening applause.

Who knew a guy with only one hand could single-handedly do so much?


	39. Chapter 39

If there was one thing she had wanted to talk about, it was clan dynamics.

Yeah, big words, scary, but it's all rather simple.

Clan dynamics was how the members of the clan function, and the influence they had within the clan. The Hyuga were an extreme example with their main family and branch family. In fact, they normally took the spotlight away from other clans with their controversial practice of the cage bird seal.

But clan dynamics existed in every clan, all following a basic structure that varied greatly.

The Clan elders-hold a lot of power when it comes to passing rules within the clan. Maintain a tax on earnings used to pay for expenses pertaining to the clan. Mostly ninja stuff.

The Clan Head-is the official leader of the clan and directly controls all other members. Needs authorization to do certain things.

Everyone else-Everyone else basically, either ninjas or civilians.

This was the clan power structure in it's loosest form and again, varied from clan to clan. But for obvious reason, she was focusing on the Uchiha.

These clan elders had loosened considerably over the past few years. Their hunger for power and desire to be recognized as the most powerful clan had been satiated. Their influence spanned the entire village now, and the past few years had only consolidated their power. But in the case that this wasn't enough, Miko purposefully started incorporating Konoha citizens into the force and into the Institute so some of their legacy would survive. (While some say Miko didn't even make the Institutes keep in mind this current level of progress would have been impossible without her, so credits must go to her.)

Her father was clan head, and as the clan head's daughter, she had a rather cushy place in the clan. She wasn't fool enough to believe that if she had been born in any other position in the clan-say Sasuke's cousin instead of twin-all of this would have still been possible. Itachi took the spotlight off of her, and she had her fathers ear. She was basically royalty within Konoha, a real life princess.

And everybody else.

That's actually what she wants to talk about the most.

While the elders and her father had changed, everybody else in the clan was being _transformed._ People who were purposeless and just apart of the clan suddenly found themselves in positions they had never been in before. Positions where they could make a difference-matter! Either at the Art Institute, working for her Aunt and Uncle, or just all around suddenly a valued member of the clan where they had once been disposable.

This was especially true for the Uchiha civilians and less than average nin. As the most powerful clan in the world, being a part of it and being a civilian left them with no real identity-in the middle grounds so to speak. They weren't mighty ninja like her parents, or important clan elders. But yet they were apart of the clan. It left them not being accepted by the village, but not really being apart of the Uchiha either.

And then everything changed.

Suddenly they were valued. Someone needed to run the fairs, be the bridge at the Force, keep up the Institute gift shop, take care of the cat clinics. Someone had to do it and they were there and ready. _The Uchiha would simply not be the most powerful ninja clan in the world if not for their civilians._

They where transforming because they were gaining a sense of self-an identity. Making a niche.

The importance of this could not be understated. When the rest of Konoha interacted with the clan, they saw the civilians. The stereotype of a stoic dark haired nin was flushed down the toilet. They were becoming the face of the clan and recognizing their worth.

And their rights.

The problem with the basic clan dynamic was if you weren't an elder or a part of the head's immediate family you practically had no voice in the direction of your clan. These enlightened members realized this.

Miko could see all this heading south really fast if it wasn't resolved. No need for a coup if the clan was to split in two. Wouldn't this be something if the clan finished itself off? Akira had just gotten done with his honeymoon and was back in the nick of time to prevent a clan wide shut down. Meanwhile this drama was playing out across the village. People realized something was up.

Her Kibbles owning Aunt was angry she had to pay to be a part of this clan, yet had no say in it. A lot of people shared her feelings.

And then something glorious happened at the meeting Akira and her father arranged. The clan elders had shown up, ready to shut shit down, but instead got shut down. The Uchiha wanted to hold a vote, and elect people in a new council. Time and time again, the elders had shown themselves to be inept, flubbing a couple deals Fugaku then had to save.

Her father stood up. A hush fell over the room.

"I recommend a council. Not to replace the elders, but to monitor trade deals and relations with Konoha, to deal with civilian matters. A meeting would be held between them and the elders one a month or whenever needed to report to and advise the elders."

Murmurs swept the crowd.

"Akira. Are you willing to head this council?"

Cheers rose up at this idea. People in the back stood up and clapped.

Akira gasped, before collecting himself and grinning charmingly.

"I will."

Akira got together Her Aunt and Uncle who ran the restaurant, her summon master uncle who ran the cat clinics, her cousin who ran the gift shop, a a few other important civilians, like the ones who monitored the charities. Starting, for the first time in any ninja clans history, a body that represented civilians. They would report directly to the elders with the decisions that was best for the clan, and have some control over fiances. Her father retained all power and influence, being the one to officially allow transactions.

It was a completely boss move on her dads part. He stayed on top and officially weakened his opponents. The best part was that he was well within his right as clan head to authorize this group as it wasn't an outside transaction. He didn't need their approval.

The clan was changing.

And for the better.


	40. Chapter 40

With the new organization within the clan, the resentment from within died with a whimper.

Profits were running smoothly and the humbled elders were actually listening for once. In celebration she had first visited the Institute to congratulate Akira-he wasn't a permanent resident but he might as well be. They laughed and joked and she choked on her tea when she saw the beautiful completed copies of the wedding photos.

They were slid in between clear plastic, the background a smooth creme that complemented the photographs. These were much more than polaroids-having to be specially developed.

All the pictures were amazing-Akira shaking the Hokage's hand, guests laughing, the small fountain in the back with her sitting on it, smiling as she held a handful of mint petals. Sasuke holding the ring, his dark hair serving as a foil.

And then her walking down the aisle, a giant grin on her face as she showered everyone with flowers. Sasuke was smiling behind her, petals in his hair. It was magical how everyone in the crowd was smiling.

And then Suzu appeared. It was like some renaissance painting, with her in the middle, all heads turned towards her with her gaze directly up front. Her favorite had to be the one where both of them were standing up at the alter. Each picture was amazing and she was sure she could have spent forever looking at this book and remembering that day, but Akira put his hand on her knee.

"Miko, I've been a very busy man lately, and in fact, I have a meeting in less than half an hour. You're training to be a ninja right?"

She wiped away tears, nodding yes.

"Well, then I have a mission for you. Can you bring this to my wife?"

Miko nodded again, Clutching the book to her chest.

Akira chuckled, kissing her forehead.

"Thank you, Miko. Sorry to keep asking things of you. Shes at her restaurant."

And with that he left. Miko gathered her things and headed out to the heart of Konoha. It was a cloudy day, so by default it was cooler too. It was that slump between lunch and dinner so she knew it would be the perfect time to deliver the album. When she arrived at the restaurant, she took a step back to admire it all.

The windows were warm and welcoming, hosting signs of what you could buy for how much in fancy scripts. Wind chimes decorated the porch, where tables and chairs were located for people to sit. A radio sat in the corner. She pushed open the door, and the smell of cooked food and desserts reached her nose. Classy music played and the swirly stools stood with their red cushions. it was a lot like the second floor of the art institute.

Her aunt in-law walked from the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron.

"Miko. What a surprise." She smirked. "What can I do for ya?"

Wordlessly Miko held up the album.

Suzu took it in her hands and read the letter on the front cover. She caught the last few words.

 _-People commend me for my art skills. But here, you are the masterpiece. I just put everything together. -With love, Akira._

She flipped open the covers and just stood taking in the pictures. It was a good thing the pictures were in plastic or they would have been ruined with tears by now. Miko guided her over to one of the open seats and they poured over the photos laughing or crying depending on which one they were looking at.

They were giggling over a picture of the Hokage covered in green petals when the door chimed.

"Welcom-"

It was an ANBU member.

He aunt paused, clasping her hands in front of her.

"I am here to close this establishment."

!

"What!? On whose authority?"

"The councils." He held out a slip of paper, which her aunt grabbed and read.

"We are breaking no laws here!"

"You are now. The council and village elders passed new regulations. Escort yourselves from the premises before I do."

"This place is a sanctuary! people can come here and be themselves and eat good food. Why wasn't I informed?"

He didn't respond.

Miko grabbed her aunt's hand.

"Let go. Everyone is in a meeting now and I can't think of a better time to inform them."

Then turned and marched out, heads held high in righteous anger.

* * *

 **End chapter! There will be more conflicts later on, as were reaching the climax of this story. Check out my other Naruto story too!**


	41. Chapter 41

They bumped into her aunt and uncle on the way over.

Apparently an ANBU member dropped in on their business and told them to get packing too. They had skipped the meeting as a delicate order was coming in and needed to make sure it arrived safely. All in vain. Miko wondered aloud if this effected other ninja clan like the Akimichi. Her aunt had grabbed her uncles hand, telling them to go on while she found out.

Suzu was worked up, and Miko said a quick prayer to whoever crossed her.

They burst in, and all conversation stopped. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.

"Suzu?" Akira called in shock.

"The village council has passed new regulations pertaining to the food industry with no prior warning. They have taken my shop from me and shut it down. I am not the only one either, as Maro's and Taro's restaurant has also been shut down."

A roar of rage and shock echoed throughout the meeting room.

Akira jumped up and ran to his wife, concerned.

"And an ANBU-"

Just then Taro ran into the room.

"Fugaku-Sama, The Akimichi were completely unaware such measures had been taken against us. They themselves had gotten a two-week notice to get their supplies up to-date. My wife is there now sorting out a deal to get are restaurants back. They are outraged a friend it being treated like this!"

This fiasco went on for another day, her mother forcing her to bed.

The village had recoiled in shock at the unjust closing at Uchiha affiliated establishments, especially at Suzu's, since she really only became an Uchiha a few weeks ago. When it was found out her place was closed right at dinner time too, some of the most influential members in the village were _pissed._ The same council members who frequented the restaurant and the ones who attended the restaurant-were the ones who passed the bill. They were mad. It was reported in the Konoha gazette.

The fact that others got a head up while they were left to flounder left angry tears in her eyes and closed up her throat.

And suddenly, she could understand why the Uchiha would go through with a coup. She had never felt more weak, more pathetic in years. Not since the nine-tails attack. They were still being discriminated against. Well, what was years of work compared to decades of systematic discrimination? It had been now two weeks ago when a man saw her dark hair and eyes and scoffed.

In fact, right now, the reason people were so outraged was because Suzu looked like one of them instead of an Uchiha. Make no mistake, the shock waves were rippling through the clan.

The woman herself had stormed up into the council room, and had poured her heart out.

 _"My restaurant didn't start out as a restaurant-it started as a dream. As a child, I saw people just wanting a place to go, to eat and be happy. To relax and to be able to afford it. I worked for years through injuries that prevented my original dream to be a ninja. So I took that knife for training and cut food instead. When I started this establishment, I realized both my dreams were similar in a significant way-they involved helping people. I have literally and figuratively served Konoha for years, and this is what I get? Cast me out, but please, keep Suzu's open for Konoha. For the people."_

With that speech, she received a standing ovation. They had quickly pardoned her and her Aunt and Uncle, who then upgraded their restaurants to the standard. The Akimichi had been a huge help too. They had immediately agreed to a trade deal with the Uchiha once the restaurants opened again, to help them get back on their feet.

In fact, that was where Miko was now. At Suzu's cleaning the place and preparing it to open in T minus half an hour.

She could see people queuing up outside. They had opened a window purposefully letting the smell of cooking food waft outside. Miko wiped the seats, Suzu got into positions and they opened the doors. A burst of excited chatter reached their ears as people streamed in. They found their seats and picked up the menu's.

"Hey Suzu!"

"Looking good, Suzu."

"Food it excellent as always, Suzu."

Things were going pretty good. Miko was in the back doing her academy homework when she heard it.

"Me and the rest are so sorry this happened here. We love this establishment and were shocked when we realized the bill we had passed caused this. Please, if you need anything, know were here."

The group of over a dozen councilpeople strong bowed, before departing to their tables.

Maybe something good would come out of this after all.

 _Elsewhere._

He exhaled deeply through his nose. Stress weighed heavily on his shoulders as he sat waiting for a meeting with the Hokage. Before Suzu had been interrupted he had thought he had heard wrong. He pulled her to the side later on, had was deeply troubled by what he had heard. He sat opposite from Akira's painting.

An ANBU had personally come to shut it down.

That meant the Hokage had to authorize it. He had thought they were on the same page, but apparently not. The frown lines on the side of his face became that much deeper.

"The Hokage will see you now." The assistant said.

He got up and walked into his office. The Hokage was clearly drowning in paperwork, pipe almost like a chimney.

"Ah, Fugaku. To what do I owe the pleasure." He leaned back, folding his hands. Fugaku kept frowning and was silent for a moment longer.

"When _Suzu's_ and _Toro's and Maro's_ places were shut down, an ANBU member appeared personally to do so. It's standard for desk Chunin to handle these things. Why were they sent, and why wasn't our establishments given a two week notice like the Akimichi?"

The Hokage was stunned-before professionally covering it up. But that said more than words could. He was unaware of this.

"I am not in control of the council. I will look into it."

Recognizing a dismissal, he turned to leave. But not before throwing one last sentence over his shoulder.

"The Uchiha were discriminated against on your watch. Do something about it before we do."

He walked out, leaving the Hokage to his thoughts.

Hurizen weaved his fingers together and closed his eyes. A sharp glare was pointed to his desk.

It was time to have a talk with Danzo.


	42. Chapter 42

After that, things had calmed down.

The Uchiha had thrown themselves into their work, and had churned out enough profits that clan members were paid to just keep track of it. But anyways she was at the academy, and she had just finished her first year.

Time flies doesn't it?

Speaking of which, she was six, going on seven now. The date of the massacre would be in a year and a half. She needed to get her butt moving. The progress she had made was indisputable, the clan connected to the village in ways never seen before. Uprooting them would be impossible. But it dosn't mean someone couldn't try or even dramatically lesson their power.

She had to move. They didn't have a giant long vacation like how she used to, but there was two and a half weeks in between.

Wow, all that time on her hands and nothing to do.

It's almost like plots she had been waiting for to enact could be enacted now. Hm.

She took a day off before getting started.

They needed something again. Something that would revive the clan's spirit and moral after the cat-ban and the restaurants shutting down. Something that would restore their faith in the village. Something that could reach a lot of people all at once.

They needed the fair.

The thing which had kick-started this all. Had put the Uchiha on track. And they were still on track, just... they had slowed down. They hadn't attended in recent years, too busy with running their businesses and being Ninja.

But what could they provide this year that they hadn't already? What would pick them up after the shut-downs? They had already used the Art-Institute and Police Force, what could the-

...Ah.

A smirk twisted her mouth.

What was this years theme again?

She took a sip of her tea before heading out to her families restaurants. It took a few days to have everything compiled and it had taken all her communication skills to get a spot at the fair, but they did it. They set up shop, the entire kitchen staffs closing the restaurants for a day, telling the people to come to the fair later on. They laid out rows of tables, put up tents and cooked some of the best food she had ever saw.

The theme this year was food.

And just like the wedding, people showed up.

 _People showed up._

They showed up hungry, wearing cat shirts, with cats in their bags, police force costumes, and with pieces from the institute. They took one look at the spread and hooted in surprise and laughter. On every table was a sign to take a sample and a sheet with the history behind the food. There were basic recipe books(among other things) near the cash register to buy and do it yourself. The Uchiha had already patented all these dishes too.

And then the Akimachi showed up. The surprise on their faces was priceless. The round ninja ran back to his clan's own stand. Finally, actual competition! The Akimichi clan head popped his head up suspiciously.

She mockingly shook her fist at the clan head.

She couldn't hear but he tossed his head back and roared in laughter anyway.

Everyone but the two clans didn't stand a chance. People were running back and forth between the two, trying to see what would happen next.

The twist to their food? It was traditional Uchiha dishes that hadn't been outside the clan in years. And Uchiha dishes were _spicy._ Something about how their food needed to be as hot as their fireballs. You are what you eat after all. To her left, a man who had bit directly into a grilled chili dashed for the awaiting milk. His friends laughed, then went to try the dish.

They cooked right in front of the people too, each maneuver slowly getting more dramatic as the Akimichi stepped up their game. Her aunt threw a chili up into the air, cutting it in a series of swift movements.

The Akimichi clan matriarch sauteed above ground with a jutsu.

Her aunt spit out a fireball and perfectly roasted a meal.

Clan nin were jokingly running back and forth, jumping on buildings and talking into their hands like they had a radio, hands positioned to block the nonexistent sun. They would go on the roofs and engage in impromptu eating contests, shoveling down 5 star food. Let her say the Akimichi could pack it away, but the Uchiha had a metabolism like no other, with their fireball jutsu in all.

With every new stunt the crowds roared in laughter.

"The Uchiha..."

"Yeah, who would of thought?" His friend responded.

The night ended with the Uchiha a transitioning over to the Akimichi stand and vice versa. They talked food and traded tips and facts, trying each others dishes.

The thing that had damaged the morale of the clan was now lifting it up. All the had to do was give the restaurants a second chance-now they were the star of the show. Danzo tried to destroy them with the places, now this was a direct slap to the face.

Tried to shut them down,

But when you're an Uchiha, there's only one way but up.


	43. Chapter 43

The fair had gone splendidly.

But she was just getting started.

She pulled Sasuke to the side the very next day and they had a whispered conversation in english. She instructed him to go on a play date with all members of the rookie nine, in very public visible places.

" _Can I bring Sakura?"_

Ah that was right. They were friends here. She remembered Sasuke had been so happy when Suzu married Akira, saying Sakura really was family now.

 _"Of course."_

He beamed and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He ran to Mikoto, asking for permission. She said yes and Sasuke darted outside. She packed her backpack and told her mother she was going two.

She chased after Sasuke until she was out of site from her mother, then promptly took a hard left and headed for the heart of Konoha. The village had been in an economic downturn recently, which made the businesses the Uchiha ran that much more important. It helped stimulate the economy. Yet another reason they couldn't be uprooted.

She dipped into a public bathroom, one that was barely frequented due to the larger one not a street away. She wrapped her curly hair up then slid it under a hat. She rooted around for a pair of glasses then slid them on her face. She wore short shorts and slid on her long baggy t-shirt. She was almost unrecognizable.

Taking a deep breath, Miko grinned before shoving everything back in her backpack and walking out into the heart of Konoha.

A word on the heart of Konoha;

It was a literal hub of activity. Konoha had the highest civilian population of all the ninja villages and possible the highest population period. The heart was the center of all activity-economic or otherwise. There was no actual map of the heart, you had to learn it by heart. People came from all over fire country just to visit here. Clans did business here and you could find whatever you needed here.

Miko had a pretty good sense of direction, rarely if ever getting lost.

But here? She got lost.

She knew for a fact she had passed that vendor before! She was just starting to panic when she heard a familiar voice.

"Miko!"

"Naruto." She said in relief. She covered his mouth with her hand before dragging him to the side. Naruto looked like Naruto-but he didn't. His eyes were green instead of blue, and his hair was a bit darker. Looking closer she noticed his whiskers blurred, like he had tried to cover up but couldn't. A henge. Impressive

"Here." She sighed, pulling out her foundation and completely covering his whiskers up.

"U-uh, Miko, what are you doing here?"

She didn't answer, looking for direction.

"Um, I'm pretty good at finding my way through here, I could help you..."

"Really? Well I need to go to the headquarters of the Konoha gazette. Can you take me there?"

"Yeah yeah!"

He grabbed her hand and expertly weaved his was through the crowds and vendors.

They stopped in front of a building with the words Konoha Gazette stamped o the front. Nice.

"You can wait out here if you like, I'm going in."

Miko pushed open the doors. She was greeted to the smell of ink and paper. A stack of papers sat hot off the press next to her and the churning of the machines reached her ears.

The newspaper was always looking for a story.

And Miko would be happy to provide one. Or a dozen. Baby steps Miko. Baby steps, she told herself. Her plan was to talk to the editor about the Uchiha, maybe ask him to do an article about Suzu's restaurant and what it means to Konoha. It was safe territory, as anyone would read an article about Suzu's. There was also the fact this was the same newspaper who reported on the Cat-ban. She knew her aunt would say yes if a reporter was sent, as publicity would do wonders for her business. And not to mention this would be like a slap to the face for Danzo. Ha.

The man behind a desk groaned.

"What's wrong, sir?"

"Ugh. There's nothing to report on now that the wars over!" He moaned again, rubbing his eyes under his glasses. Seriously? People like her brother were traumatized and others died, and he's upset it's over.

"What a shame, sir! Can't you report on anything here?"

"Yeah, but we are running out of idea's and I can't leave until I come up with something." He groaned, deep into his self pity. His stomach rumbled, and she pulled out the leftovers from the fair her aunt Suzu helped cook. Immediately the smell wafted through the room.

"Hey uh, kid. You gonna eat that?"

"Oh! You can have it, it's too heavy for me anyway." She grinned, handing over a plastic fork and knife.

He dug in and she was rewarded to happy sounds through the food.

"This is heavenly kid. Where'd you get it?"

"Suzu's, in the Heart of Konoha. You should check it out."

"I would love to bu-." Realization dawned on his face.

"Thats it! We could do a story on this! Suzu's been downtown for over a dozen years, and improved upon and renamed by Suzu. It's a perfect story! You're a genius kid!"

He grabbed his notepad and food, leaving Miko by herself. The door slammed shut.

"..."

"I know." She said simply to the empty room.

She gathered her back pack and walked out, eyes finding Naruto gawking into a store window. When he saw her he opened his mouth to speak but his stomach growled.

"C'mon, I'll get us something to eat." She was in a very good mood.

She walked until they came across a vendor selling cheesy something. Something bothered her about the man. She felt like she had seen him before. The price for the treats was pretty over the top, but Naruto already ordered.

"Here you go." He handed over their cheesy treats.

"Mhh! this is almost as good as the Uchiha food at the fair!" Naruto exclaimed. Since when did he attend the fair?

The vendor didn't like that.

"The _U-ch-iha,_ " He spat "Are scumbags!"

Oh. That was why he was so familiar. He was the man who scowled and sneered when he had saw her dark hair and eyes, and when he saw the crest on her back. He was the one who made her feel terrible. In the background, he was going on to a shell-shocked Naruto about the pigs in the clan-paying special attention to Akira.

She saw red.

"Akira Uchiha is a man who would give his life for his family and village. With every word you speak ill of him, it shows your ignorance. The Uchiha have done nothing but make this village safer for you and for me, and I hope to repay them one day in kind. You call them pigs who eat slop, but the amount of hatred you spew is disgusting! You do not know them and you do not have the right to judge them. The Uchiha are proud of who they are and what they have accomplished. What do you have to be proud about except cheating kids out of their money?"

She turned her head to Naruto.

"And Naruto!" She whipped off her hat, curls tumbling down, threw aside the glasses and lifted the heavy long shirt-revealing her Uchiha crest on the back. Gasps were heard as she stuffed everything into her backpack. The man was open mouthed, cheese dripping off his spatula. She wiped his foundation off with her hands.

"Never, _never_ be ashamed of who you are."

She smirked.

"And besides, I think those whiskers are cute."


	44. Chapter 44

The Uchiha were gaining their momentum back.

For some reason, Danzo was sitting his ass out on this one, cause she didn't see a sniff of his influence. Uchiha were more preppy as they went about their day. Plus the fact there had been five other weddings between an officer and a civilian to date.

Naruto had been especially active lately, forcing anti-Uchiha people to interact with the Uchiha officers. She noticed his pranks were becoming more clever and thought out too.

She knew the perfect topper to the Art Institute. Recently the last building was vacated around the red brick building, and a few were demolished because of safety reason. She had heard Ino talking about her families struggle to find growing space outside Konoha.

This move would solidify ties, create more revenue, and make a pretty place to boot.

She started by going over to Akira's house. It had been awhile since she'd been here, but it hadn't change much except for the fact that Suzu had moved in. Suzu had recovered the album and they picked over pictures until Akira came in. Suzu excused herself, having taxes to do on the restaurant.

Miko joked around about spicy food for a bit, before casually mentioning what her friend Ino said.

They talked a bit more about how perfect the building was for the Institute, but the desolate surroundings. Then they switched to how Suzu was having trouble growing all her ingredients on her roof top, given the space and regulations. They talked about how the Institute was surrounded by old buildings and over grown lots and wouldn't it be nice if someone bought those up and fixed them?

It took another half an hour of talking before Akira came to the conclusion that they should get the lots.

Akira was turned stunned towards the carpet at this revelation and she smiled behind her cup of tea. She had planted the seed and watered, now to watch it grow.

Now Miko simply didn't have the time to babysit this project, but she knew her aunt and uncle weren't dumb, and would seize the moment. In the near future Akira would bring up the idea at a clan meeting and would be met with approval. They would bring it up with the Yamanaka, who were also struggling to find room to grow their flowers, would agree to it.

They would co-buy and own the lots and with a couple jutsu clear all the rubble and old buildings. Green houses would be put in the back, and a 7 foot high brick wall would be erected to keep civilians out, leaving side alleys for the tenants of the other buildings. It wrapped around and in front of the Institute a bit.

Suzu would grow her spices and vegetables, The Yamanaka would have their own flower section.

And then the idea would take a life of its own. They threw in koi ponds and a little stream branching off from the Naka river with a tiny bridge. People would flock from Konoha to walk through the gardens and peek in the green houses, and everyone involved in the making would pat themselves on the back for such a great deal-as they split the bill and earned a lot of money.

A father would hold his child up to the growing plants in awe, and couples would giggle and hold hands as they walked through the wasteland turned gardens. Afterwards you could enter the gift shop. The scenic gardens inspired the artists, and was often a peaceful place to clear you head, not to mention an awesome view from the balcony. The clan symbols rested on top of the gate entrance.

But that would be in the future. Right now, Miko was heading home. She had about a week to go until the first official Cat-Dog festival and she needed to make sure it was a smashing success.

* * *

 **Okay I'm planning on finishing this up in 20 chapters or so, so tell me what you think each chapter adds to the story or helps Miko achieve her goal. Throw in some ideas and suggestions of what you think would be cool or helpful. Tell me the strengths and weaknesses of this story, and why you liked it. Was it clever? Creative? And how so?**


	45. Chapter 45

_Suzu's place stands welcoming people inside._

 _The bright warm lights shine through the night and the relaxed friendly atmosphere has drawn people from all over Konoha to visit the classy, well-dressed establishment. A place that looks small from the outside but is really larger than life._

 _A man laughs at a joke, a child has fallen asleep in his chair, and a woman is twirling her spaghetti around her fork while talking to her friend._ _Upbeat music sets a sleepy mood as it curls over the customers along with the smell of cooking from the kitchen._

 _A group of friends laugh as one of them tries the recent additions to the menu. A smart one, her glass of milk is on hand. Her friend eats the spicy dish without blinking an eye, and as a reward, Suzu tops off her glass of milk._

 _All these people share one thing in common; they've just had a delicious meal._

 _The history of Suzu's is a_ _tremulous one. The restaurant started out as a small general store during the time of the second Hokage by a retired nin. It was successful and was passed from owner to owner, converted to a storage place at one point and then to a general store again. The various wars had each store shutting down in turn. It was ten years ago today when it looked like the end of the establishment-that is, until Suzu came along._

 _Working through troubles of her own, she renovated the store and turned it into a restaurant, starting out with family recipes. The place quickly became a refuge, with regular customers and people coming here for a night out. The family foods had the effect of bringing people together, turning around in their booths to talk with one another._

 _Suzu herself has a lot to day on the subject._

 _"Food-good food, has always brought me happiness, especially with injuries I had when I was younger. I wanted to bring the same feeling to others."_

 _What the patrons have to say?_

 _"I think she accomplished her goal." Said the same woman who bit into the chili without flinching._

 _"This place has a vibe to it, man. A good one." Said one of the men with his friends._

 _To date, Suzu's place went from a general store on the verge of shutting down, to one of the most popular establishments in Konoha. Surviving the third war, an economic slump, and new surprise regulations._

 _Suzu's is here to stay, but that doesn't mean you should take your time getting here!_

 _I urge everyone to come here a soon as possible-especially with the new additions to the menu._


	46. Chapter 46

While her father talked to Tsume and Neko-baa, she and Sasuke played with Kiba.

He had brought akamaru, who was an incredibly small puppy. He was cute, but she still thought kibbles was cuter when he was a kitten. Now he was a full grown young tom-cat. They were playing fetch and giggling over Iruka-sensei when Neko-baa burst in-with her granddaughter. Tamaki?

She had shoulder length brown hair and pretty hazel eyes. She stood nervously behind her grandmother.

"Play nice, kids." Neko-baa turned and left.

"Hello!" She and Sasuke greeted.

"Hi." She said back.

Kiba said nothing, as he was stunned into silence. The normally loud boy was speechless. The girl blushed harder, opting to sit behind Miko. Miko liked her, as she was a cat person at heart and all around caring and gentle.

"Neko-baa said to play nice." She said shyly. She grabbed some of the blocks and looked at Kiba.

"Wanna make a house with me?" She smiled.

He nodded dumbly.

She and Sasuke kinda sat on the side and just watched the two build a mini house. She never really had the patience to play with kids unless they were Sasuke, and was dying to be at the meeting, so while this was nice, she still had a pout on.

"This is the living room, where we could put all the pets." She said. Kiba nodded again, finally speaking his agreement.

Progress? She guessed so.

Everyone knew the Uchiha and the Inuzuka were running the show. A friendly rivalry was making either of them go all out, Miko throwing in suggestions whenever she could. And despite just having a fair not even a week ago, everyone involved was hyped.

This wasn't like the other festival though. There were stations instead of stands, and everything was a little less formal. Her uncle had broken out his cat summons and Neko-baa brought out her ninneko or whatever. This being made possible by the original two fairs.

People started trickling in a little after the sunrise. You could tell right away who was a fan of what due to what thye were wearing. The Institute had worked double time to churn out enough cat memorabilia and even make some dog merchandise.

She giggled with Sasuke as they hid behind a 5 foot statue of a cat. Dirt covered her knees as she peaked around the statue.

And then Kakashi fucking Hatake walked in, wearing his _I love my dogs_ shirt. She had only seen him two other times, at the wedding and once in the streets so this was reeling. He was looking around interestingly at the displays, Pakkun in his arms.

He paused, then looked around.

She whipped back behind the cat, shushing Sasuke. They crouched, tufts of grass tickling their ankles. A beat of silence where they could hear their heartbeats.

"Hm, what do we have here?" Said a voice from above.

They squealed, heads cracking together. They rolled back n'sync, clutching their foreheads. She blinked through the pained tears, opening her eyes to a figure perched on top of the cat statue. Kakashi.

He was looking slightly startled at their puppy eyed expressions. He was younger than he was in canon, and probably just out of ANBU judging by his faintly lost expression. She reflexively almost opened her senses before catching herself.

"Um, I'm Miko! But everyone calls me Mo." She had insisted a week before school had ended. Kakashi just stared, not as put together as he would be. Sasuke sat up and poked his fingers together, blinking up at him. Kakashi shifted, uncomfortable around children. Very, _very_ , uncomfortable.

"You like doggies?" Mo asked, trying to lighten the atmosphere.

Kakashi looked like he wanted nothing more than to jump ship but was stalled by her question. He hesitantly turned back, looking down at them. Pakkun shifted in his arms.

"Yeah..."

Miko decided to save him so she pulled Sasuke's hand and said bye, walking towards one of the cat summons. After Kakashi, people trickled in, also wearing appropriately themed clothes.

And then it started.

People roared in laughter as a group of dogs quite literally made a dog pile.

Not to be outdone, the cats did dramatic flips through the air and landed in a pyramid.

They went back and forth with each maneuver, running through obstacle courses, tree hopping, balancing acts on top of poles, and dog jockeys- the idea inspired by the incident that floated around after one went in between Fugaku and Tsume. That was probably one of the most popular acts.

And then Kibbles arrived.

Roars shook the flags and posters as her aunt carried him out on an orange pillow-dressed in a Kibbles shirt. People ran to the front who were wearing the shirts-including her and Sasuke. She walked in a circle, letting people reach out and pet the cat, and stopped to let others take pictures. Kibbles stood up and stretched, purring loudly before sitting up. Kibbles had achieved cult status.

In many ways, Kibbles stole the show.

But for her, it was Tamaki and Kiba, kneeling under a picnic bench and holding hands that made her day.


	47. Chapter 47

_Mo's reason why she thinks the Massacre is unlikely._

The reason the massacre had been possible in the first place was because the Uchiha were going to strike first with the coup, lending Danzo and the elders the excuse they needed to exterminate the clan.

Miko had eavesdropped on every meeting she could, even sneaking into the Naka shrine a couple times and didn't hear a shred of the word coup. If the massacre was to happen, it would be completely unjustifiable. Even more so then canon. While discrimination was still simmering in the crevices, it wasn't as nearly as bad as it could have been, calming the elders. Their recent influence also satisfied the more power hungry Uchiha. So even though she didn't hear all the meetings, she could be relatively assured they still weren't talking about it.

And there was the fact the Uchiha didn't pose a threat to the village this time. The bare bones of it was Danzo had Konoha's best interests in mind, and while he was unsteady due to the Uchiha's undisputed power, they helped the village. Economically, socially, etc. They sold many services and provided items that were extremely popular. Getting rid of the Uchiha especially when then helped so much with Konoha's unhealthy economy would be just plain stupid.

Not to mention the Police Force. While Konoha didn't have as much crime problems as Kiri, They still had them, especially in a post-war climate. The Hokage relied on the Force to keep everything from going to hell in a hand-basket inside. They were vital to village security and stability. Some of the most dangerous criminals were locked under the HQ.

For those reasons alone it would be near impossible to get rid of them.

But then Miko came along.

She forged connections and built bridges. She endeared them (directly or indirectly) to the public. She literally tied members of the clan to civilians through Naruto's pranks and the weddings, spacing Uchiha all across the village-making it impossible to put them all in one spot. So say, if they tried to execute the Uchiha all in one night without alerting anyone, they would have to gallivant all around the village.

She smashed stereotypes, and turned the Uchiha into humans.

By going on 'play-dates' she showed the public through the clan heirs that they were connected. It was a symbolic gesture.

All this joint stuff, like the gardens with the Yamanaka and the 'restaurants' with the Akimichi, the Cat-Dog festival+clinics with the Inuzuka, working at the Force with the Nara had the effect of binding their clan to others and sharing power-while still retaining it. Heck, the Uchiha had even contacted the Aburame to help with insects in their garden, giving them a foothold too.

(This put some people at ease and put a check on the Uchiha. This was a delicate balance that Miko needed to watch closely because lose too much power and Danzo would exterminate them. Too much and people would get uneasy and point fingers.)

There was also they fact she had calmed rumors about who was behind the Nine-tails attack with the donations and charities to the orphanages, plus the clean up.

It was next to impossible to massacre the clan.

But, still entirely possible to try.


	48. Chapter 48

Shisui.

She recalled, very early in life the mental declaration to wrapped him around her finger. And she did! Somewhat... He has been busy with ninja stuff apparently, training with Itachi and all that jazz. Whenever she saw him, like at a fair or party she made sure to talk but the real bond was with Itachi.

So she needed to get closer, because if all else failed he was her backup, and she needed to protect him from Danzo. The man himself had been strangely inactive, and her father was walking around with his head held high-whatever that meant.

So she pulled up Sasuke and demanded to be trained.

They were going into their second year, and they did have basic training, but it never hurt for more.

For too long Miko had been left in the dust when it came to physical strength. Her plotting was all good when she was a kid but she was getting older, almost seven and she needed to be an excellent ninja so she could defend herself and everyone else. Things were changing.

They had been surprised when they had demanded to tag along on their trip but caved under the combined forces of their puppy eyes and Fugaku's glower. Sh they had taken the private training ground and gave them an evaluation. School was going to start soon after all.

No surprise, Sasuke was better than her in taijutsu but she had him beat in everything else. With her more mature mindset(and Shika and her plots), grasping strategies was second nature to her. She laid traps and was more accurate in her throws due to practicing with Tenten.

Both of them sucked at Chakra control. Sasuke because he was seven, her because of the overwhelming amount of spiritual chakra she possessed. Itachi and Shisui both had their Sharingan on, so she couldn't risk using her abilities to help.

She could tell both of them were impressed despite themselves, as they should be. Sasuke had placed first and she had place third behind Sakura. They took a break for a bit. While they were all eating the riceballs, she and Sasuke made eye contact. It was time.

"Itachi-ni, who is Danzo?" Sasuke asked in the innocent way even she couldn't pull off.

The effect was immediate. They both stilled in their eating, Shisui an inch away from choking.

"Danzo is... a village elder."

"Yeah, but why does he hate us?" Miko said.

"...!?"

"Who is he to hate us?" Miko asked angrily.

"What makes you think people hate us?" Itachi said sharply.

"Nii-san, were 7 not stupid." Sasuke whined.

"Don't dodge! I am talking about Danzo, and the Cat ban and the restaurants! What do you think, Shisui?"

He sighed.

"I remember when you were just a baby." He sighed.

"And I know you don't remember, but when you were a baby-a few years ago, the Uchiha were very different then they were now and we were under suspicion for something we didn't do. It made people not like us-including Danzo."

She nodded slowly.

"And Danzo and a few others, they still think like that. And they always probably will. Mo, that doesn't mean you are any less, okay? Plenty of people know how cool you are, and whatever happened doesn't define you."

A jerk of her chin cause a tear to drop off. Flashes of the cheese vendor flashed through her mind.

"It's not fair!" She sniffed angrily. Itachi clutched Sasuke's arm, puling him closer.

"What happened, Miko?" He asked tensely.

"Nuddin'." She mumbled. "Danzo bad."


	49. Chapter 49

That was the thing about working in the shadows.

The light was blinding.

And the full weight of Hurizen's glare was like the sun in its intensity. When he had been summoned he knew it wasn't going to end well form him. Seeing his old friend with his hands clasped, pipe in mouth but not smoking assured him Hizuren was angry.

Furious in fact.

He squared his shoulders in righteous anger under the weight of that stare. He should have been Hokage. Hurizen was always to soft, too weak. The Uchiha were a threat, now more so than ever.

He was doing his duty, trying to protect the village. But every way he turned there they were. He tried to bury them but like him, they thrived in the darkness. But unlike him, they burst into the light and soaked it up. Their influence and power was spreading like a virus, a fungal infection, a cancer, spreading across the village and sinking their claws into it.

The needed to be _uprooted._

But Hurizen was weak. Was lecturing him. Was defending them.

The arm hidden by cloth curled in anger. He remembered when those menaces of summons the clan had, getting into public spaces, disturbing the residents, so he banned them through the council.

And then Hurizen was swayed by Fugaku and his two brats. Publicly took a stance against him. Insulted him by reversing his ban. Sent Tsume with her hideous shirt to contradict him in front of a crowd-with a reporter in it no less. Newspapers had no place here. Another thing Hurizen allowed in one of his many moments of weakness. It stopped him.

Preventing him from doing his job.

And now he was doing it again. Defending them. Protecting them. _Why?_

Because he was weak. Compassionate.

He always knew he should have been Hokage.

Standing here, like some misbehave child, being lectured by Hizuren made his blood boil. He had to consciously keep the Sharingan from being activated. And then Hurizen said something that stopped him cold.

"Ten years ago, I ordered root to be disbanded. But it has come to my attention that the order has been poorly followed. You have a month to fully disband root and clear out before I come there myself."

Danzo always knew it would come down to either one of two things, ever since that Uchiha man came forward with his records. The Police Force finding enough evidence, or, Hurizen stepping in himself.

And now it seemed like he had a month.

A month to make his move.

A month to protect Konoha.


	50. Chapter 50

Miko grinned happily as she carried boxes into the storage room on the third floor.

A glass blowing room and a wood/stone carving room had recently been added and they were busing shuffling around supplies as the renovators left. Since they were considerably more dangerous arts then painting they had been moved up to the third floor.

The third floor was dim and empty, Miko being the last one left. The smell of paint and baked clay was strong here, along with plaster.

The last renovator had left and she was alone up here in the back storage room. She was helping out her relatives by sorting and moving the boxes. She put the glazes in rainbow order, put the sharp tools in specially marked boxed, and put the extra clay in airtight boxes. It was exhausting going up and down the stairs with these supplies, but next week she heard they would be working on getting an elevator installed.

But it was one thing at a time, and they were still working on the gardens.

Miko winced as she dropped a metal tool, the sound echoing around the room. A couple members of her family were sleeping above on the fourth floor. She made the decision to sneak up later, and get a view of the in-progress gardens.

Deciding to do a little extra, she took some of the bone dry pieces and wheeled them over to the kilns. Kilns were a tricky business, getting up to 1,800F to 2,400F.

It had cooled down to the point where she could load it up to the full. She took the others pieces out and laid them on the shelves to cool off. Placing pottery in a kiln was a lot like a puzzle, or tetris. You need enough space between the pieces so they wouldn't stick, and also needed to fit as much in as possible. If the pieces were glazes, you needed to make sure it wouldn't drip. Not to mention the varying shapes and sizes.

She had just loaded the last piece and was preparing to fire it up when something stopped her dead in her tracks.

Purposefully moving a tool to keep the lid open, she searched the side of the container. It was compromised. Somehow, the side of the lid had been damaged to the point where if it was fired up, the whole thing would explode, bringing the third and fourth floor with it, not to mention damage to the second. It was for this reason all materials were fireproofed in the building.

If she had fired this up without looking her family upstairs would have all died.

Hands shaking, she ran behind it and pulled the plug. She pulled it wide open and wrote three notes and slapped it to all sides. She ran to the other kiln and was relieved to find no damage. Just in case, she pulled the plug on that one too.

It was when she had placed foot on the top step she almost fell and broke her neck.

Those kilns were made out of solid metal and some of the best, hardy materials you could find. Especially the lid. Because it contained temperatures that could burn your bones to dust.

How could you accidentally damage it to the point where it would result in the deaths of multiple people and the destruction of one of the Uchiha's most important establishments?

That was just it.

You couldn't.

Someone had sabotaged their equipment.

When she went to get Akira, he shook his head at the damage and scheduled a replacement. In the mean time, he shut off power to the third floor. While he thought it was fishy too, there was nothing they could do to prove it wasn't an accident. A cat ban and the shutting down of restaruants was one thing. Something that could have resulted in the deaths of others was another.

This raised the stakes.

While she walked out of the institute not even the fresh flowers and sunlight could chase away the haunting smell of cooked clay and fire.


	51. Chapter 51

The day had come when they finally went back to the Academy.

She had undoubtedly gotten a lot done these past two weeks, but she missed going to class, and she missed using Shika's back as a pillow, too. She sat with Hinata and Shika today, as she grabbed the most comfortable looking chair she could find-which was right in between the two. They were all good friends and Hinata having so much support actually improved her stutter.

She jumped up to hug Iruka when he hurried into class, carrying a tied Naruto over his shoulder.

She sat down grinning, and kept doing so even under Shika's suspicious glare. Maybe it seemed too fake? She toned it down into a small smile but it did nothing except make him narrow his eyes. He had that familiar calculating look in his face.

He leaned over.

"What happened?" He whispered.

Miko didn't want to drag him into a possibly deadly scenario so she kept her mouth shut. Hinata poked her fingers together, looking at Miko worriedly.

How could she tell them about the kiln? How she was almost responsible for the very thing she was trying to prevent.

They must have sensed her down mood and Miko did nothing to hide it now. She pouted and was slow to pick up her pencil. They made efforts to cheer her up and it did work a bit.

The first day was over too quickly.

Sasuke went to Sakura's house, picked up by a man with pastel pink hair. He had gotten permission from Mikoto earlier. Miko was waiting at the academy for Akira to pick her up. Itachi was busy.

Hinata and Shika waited with her, and she smiled at the warm feeling it left her.

When she saw her uncle cresting the hill, she smiled. He was out of breath, paint spattered on his clothes. He threw out a lopsided grin, wiping his hands on his sweatpants, paint brush behind his ear.

"Hey Mo! These your friends?"

She nodded. He made her feel better, because he was suspicious of the kiln too.

"Well, lets walk them home too! I'll even get us some sweets form a vendor."

She was going to nod in agreement when she noticed empty the streets were. The dead silence except for their conversation. And, the prickling on the edge of her senses. The chill that crawled up her spine. They weren't alone. She grabbed Shika's and Hinata's hands.

"That's wonderful, but I think we should get back as soon as possible." Poor Akira didn't know what to say to that, so he shrugged and nodded. He jumped ahead of them, grinning and looking back. His eyes bulged. Miko couldn't scream fast enough.

 _A sword was sticking right through his chest._

Her eyes refused to believe what they were seeing. She didn't- _couldn't_ feel Shika and Hinata pulling at her.

No. No way.

Her uncle slid off the sword and onto the ground. His mouth opened and closed and his paintbrush clattered on the academy steps.

 _No._

A spot of red paint widened and dripped from the center of his chest.

 _What would she tell Suzu?_

She ripped her hands form them.

"Kai!" She screamed. But he was...still there. His eyes were glassy. Like the clay beads they made.

Distantly she heard screams.

A man completely covered in black, wearing a Konoha band stood holding a bloody sword. One of the sensei's were screaming. She ran.

More Konoha shinobi appeared surrounding them completely. She barely opened her mouth before the hilt of the sword cracked against her skull.

Screams followed her into unconsciousness.


	52. Chapter 52

_"Hey Emilia, What are you doing today?"_

 _The sixteen year old girl snorted, before rolling over to the side of her bed. She held her phone clumsily above her face, in a way that threatened a fall. She reached into her hoodie pocket and pulled out a pringles can._

 _"Can I have some?"_

 _"No."_

 _In a direct contradiction of her words, she held out the can._

 _"Auntie Lola is having a wedding this weekend and we are invited-"_

 _"No."_

 _Her mother sighed, rubbing her face in exasperation before plopping down on the single chair couch. They coexisted in silence for a bit. Her blue eyes were zeroed in on the screen, straight brown hair splayed out on the pillow. She didn't seem to have a care in the world._

 _"Your friends came over again, invited you to a movie, a superhero one!" Her mother tried again, bouncing in excitement._

 _"No."_

 _She didn't look away from her screen, scrolling through memes. She slowly reached up and cleaned her ear. Her sweatpants clad legs stretched out lazily across her bed._

 _"Emilia, you're wasting you're life like that! It'll be over before you know it if you keep this up! You're such a smart girl, please don't waste it." Her mother pleaded._

 _There was no response, and she couldn't tell if her daughter had heard or not._

 _"Well, i'm going to the grocery store now. At least come wit me then, you won't have to do much but push the cart and be on your phone."_

 _"...Fine."_

 _She shuffled up, socked feet slipping into slippers and hood pulled over her head. It took a monumental effort to get up._

 _..._

 _She would die in those clothes._

* * *

...


	53. Chapter 53

There was a strange rumbling.

it vibrated through her, like the ground was moving. She wasn't sure which way was down or up, or even if she wasn't under water. It felt like she was floating but it didn't feel like anything at all. She still had arms, Right?

She twitched her fingers, or, at least she thought she did.

She couldn't tell.

But she did hear a faint scraping noise-kinda like twitching fingers.

She was blanketed with a sort of numbness, the kind where it was hiding extreme pain. Her heartbeat was in her head. Each breathe was congested and she was confused. She wasn't sick. But she was twisted in a weird way, like she had been thrown and skidded on her side. The angle was pressing down on her chest, and each breath was a uphill battle. It didn't help wherever she was was stifling, with no breeze or fresh hair. It was sticky and hot.

She wrestled sluggishly with her eyelids, who refused to open.

The rumbling was still going on, and she could now make out a distinct clopping through the static.

Her breathing quickly as she struggled with a once simply task before she stopped briefly.

What would she see when she opened her eyes?

The static was still there, but was clearing a bit. She felt her arms and the tingles in her hand from where she was laying on it. She cracked open a lid.

As she suspected, she was in some sort of enclosed space. She could faintly make out cracks of where the enclosed space seams were. It seemed to be an reinforced cargo carrier. Her hair spilled over her shoulder and swayed with the rocking of the container. Was she on a boat? The clopping noise was louder than ever. Horses.

...

Was she being smuggled out of Konoha!?

That made no sense! Would she be a ransom hold? Sharingan hunters or something? For a moment she was worried the massacre had started, despite all her precautions. That Root agents had started it. But if they had, she would be dead too.

 **Dead like uncle Akira.**

 _Oh god._

 _He was dead._

She started shaking harder, despite the stuffy air.

"Miko? Miko?" A small voice through the static.

She choked and coughed on her tears and turned her head towards the voice. Was she hallucinating.

A figure which blocked out part of the crack was in the corner of the box. It was huddled as small as possible, as though trying to shrink and disappear. They called out again. How did they know her name?

"Who is it?" She rasped.

"It-it's me, Hinata."

!

Hinata!?

Why was she here!? Was she kidnapped because of her eyes too or because she was with Miko? And why were they dressed up as Konoha shinobi? As a disguise because that could be taken many ways...

"Are you okay?" She whispered hoarsely.

"Are you? You got knocked out. We didn't."

"We?"

"Shikamaru's here too."

God damn it.

"Is he okay?"

"Yes. He got tired and fell asleep."

Well, good to know somethings never change. She peered around the box and saw another small shape huddled to her left.

 _Akira changed, from alive to dead-_

"Do you know who kidnapped us? Can you use your special eyes?" She whispered.

"I have. Were on a caravan going through woods. I don't know where they're taking us." Hinata got up and crawled over to Miko, crying. She gathered her in her lap like how they did when they were kids.

"I'm scared." Hinata whispered.

'I know, I know. I'll get us out of it."

She will.

She had to.


	54. Chapter 54

The Hyuga affair was undoubtedly terrible, with one of the villages best ninja killed in canon.

Well, this was the affair times **_ten._**

Utter _fucking_ chaos.

The police force was searching every nook and crannie in the village, people, normal everyday people, were joining in the search for the lost children. Echo of calls rang through the village as people looked behind cellars and under porches.

Two clan heirs and a clan heads daughter captured in one fell swoop, two with bloodlines? A _shitstorm._

But the icing on the cake was an eye witness account of an academy teacher staying late to grade papers. Hearing screams of the same children he taught, Umino Iruka got up and witnesses a shinobi with a bloodied sword, a crumpled figure lying at his feet. Konoha's symbol was shown loud and proud. The three children were clinging onto each other a group of six or seven more 'Konoha' shinobi surrounded them and vanished.

Since headbands are heavily regulated and almost impossible for outsiders to get their hands on a copy, plus the fact that even if they took it off an unretrieved corpse, the blue fabric would have degraded by now. Each body and headband is recorded, and the fact that the headbands were still in apparent top condition led to the fact that Konoha shinobi did this. People had their doubts 'maybe it was just a disguise?' but again, read above.

Konoha shinobi did this.

To their own fellow Konoha shinobi.

Not to mention _murdering_ a defenseless retired Akira. Akira who, was one of the most popular people in the village, not to mention Uchiha. Akira who ran the Institute, held talk circles, painted for everyone and anyone. Akira whose painting was in the Hokage tower, who was a part of the police force. A man who was a newly wed, and left behind a widow-who was another huge figure on Konoha's horizon.

Shock waves were traveling through the village. The Uchiha were throwing everything into this.

While is certainty seemed like it, they couldn't be certain the Uchiha were the main target. If so, why were the two heirs dragged along too?

The fact remained, after scourging the village, the children were nowhere to be found. Were they even still alive? If they had been killed, their bodies were well hidden. All they could do now was wait for the ransom demand...

* * *

Sasuke laid wide awake. It was past two in the morning but he couldn't sleep.

He remembered playing with Sakura, eating cherry tomatoes plucked off of bushes in her mothers garden. The just gotten into a game of ninja when real ninja burst from the bushes. The Police force! They said nothing and pulled him away from Sakura. When his mother had saw him she shrieked and hugged him tighter than he had ever been hugged before. His father had sighed in relief and Itachi bowed his head. Sasuke noticed something was missing.

"Wheres Miko?"

At his mother's broken expression, he started to cry.

His sister was always good at comforting other people, she knew what to say and how to make them feel. Whenever he was sad, she let him sleep in her bed with her. It was always nice and warm, and it smelled like mint and paint and books-like his sister. He liked her bed.

Which was where he was now. But instead of his sister's scent luring him back to sleep, it just kept him awake, reminding him of what was missing.


	55. Chapter 55

She knew the moment Shika woke up because he gasped.

His heavy frantic breathing filled the tiny box-which had stopped moving about an hour ago. Miko lifted herself from Hinata's lap.

"Shika, shh, shh, It's me and Hinata." Miko whispered.

He stopped panicking, clutching onto her arms and desperately looked around as his eyes tried to he would see Hinata, or the cracks like she did.

"Where are we?" He rasped.

"I don't know." She said truthfully.

She didn't know why they were kidnapped, who kidnapped them, why they weren't hurt yet, what the circumstances were, how everyone else was reacting, or where they were. She, for the first time, just didn't Fucking know.

The box rattled, as if it was being moved from off a high place. Miko hurriedly tried to stretch out her senses, since being knocked out and her head would caused her to have a harder time of it. Four people, very high in chakra were handling their box. Hinata woke up and started to panic when she couldn't feel Miko, but she placed a hand in her arm. Then she felt two more chakra signals, each almost as powerful as the Hokage. Since they were far off yet her senses didn't immediately shut down.

She was about to get some answers soon.

They dropped the crate and they smacked against the bottom roughly. Miko scrapped her knees and palms on the granulated wood.

"Hinata." she whispered." When I poke you, activate your eyes and stare at their arms, okay?"

"Y-yes." She stuttered.

"Hide it behind your hair." Miko undid the falling out french braids and a curtain of dark blue fell. Miko ignored her trembling hands as she did so. Flashes of Akira crossed her eyes as she stared at the blood on her hands.

Blood on her hands.

The box creaked and groaned, and she could feel the powerful presence even without actively seeking it out.

Then one of the walls was removed. Blinding painful light assaulted them in one big square, pulling tears from their eyes as they curled up in the corner of the box.

A raspy laugh scraped up her spine like knives. Nails on a chalk board.

" _Kuhkuhkuhkuh..."_

Her breathing came out in short gasps and she squeezed her burning eyes shut. Rough strong hands grabbed them and shoved them into a pile onto the grass. They lay trembling in a pile. Hinata could see through her eye lids and hair so when Miko heard _him_ start to speak, she poked her.

"It's as I promised Orochimaru."

" _Kuhkuh... I only asked for an Uchiha."_

"The other children witnessed too much." Danzo said. His root agents had long since taken off their Konoha headbands

"With the police force and many ninja out searching for them Konoha will be susceptible attacks-especially the Uchiha. One is a Uchiha, another is an Hyuga. The boy is also part of a clan. I will give you them, and in return, _you will help me destroy the Uchiha._ "

Danzo. She had been out played so hard it wasn't even funny. She had tried so hard to cover up signs of her meddling she forgot to realize she would have been a target regardless, simply because she was an Uchiha and a clan heads daughter.

This set up was prefect. The Uchiha would blame the deaths of Akira and her kidnapping on Konoha. Factoring in Hinata and Shika, it wouldn't lead to immediate separation but it was a crack in Miko's armor, one that Danzo could wedge a shovel through and _lean on._

"The spoils of the massacre can be yours." Danzo sweetened the pot.

Was he fucking stupid!? Leading Orochimaru into the heart of the village whe he damn well wanted to destr-

" _HOW DARE YOU!"_ Orochimaru screamed.

"Hinata!" Miko choked.

"They're attacking the snake man!" She gasped.

Her eyes snapped open.

A scene of chaos as Danzo held a knife to Orochimaru's throat and slashed. Blood flew in an arch and Miko was amazed at the details and everything she noticed. Shika was curled up and Hinata was trembling. So Danzo was trying to kill two birds with one stone, then. He wasn't doing so well, as Orochimaru had gotten back up.

Root agents fought with Ororchimaru's minions, locked in intense combat. No one was paying attention to the mud splattered children.

Miko grabbed their hands and ran.

A great wall of dirt sprung up to their left, blocking them from view and the heavily injured root agent from harm.

They ran, ran into the underbrush and tumbled down a hill chocked with bushes, brambles scraping their faces and leaves rustling.

"R-river!" Hinata choked.

Shika went over the edge of the cliff, the river roaring underneath them. Then Hinata.

And then her.

The air whistled in her ears and the last thing she saw was the edge of the cliff, rapidly rising out of reach.


	56. Chapter 56

_"Nii-san, what do you want?"_

 _Miko nibbled on her rice balls, looking thoughtfully up at her older brother. Their parents were gone at another meeting and Sasuke had long since fell asleep. Itachi bit into his own rice ball with amusement, swallowing, then speaking._

 _"I would like Dango."_

 _Miko choked then squealed in annoyance._

 _"No! What do you want?"_

 _Itachi adopted a confused but interested look. Miko took a deep breath, putting down her rice ball._

 _"I want the Uchiha to be a part of Konoha. I want us to get along with no fighting. What do you want?"_

 _Itachi looked at his little sister like he had never quite seen her before. Miko kept her game-face on, deciding pouting was a bit overboard."_

 _"Well imouto, I want...peace."_

 _She tilted her head._

 _"I want no fighting, no senseless death, or violence."_

 _They sat in silence on the back porch for a bit._

 _"I want the same thing." Miko said suddenly. "What else do you want? A dream or yours? Like Sasuke wants to be captain of the Police Force."_

 _Itachi laughed, taking pleasure from her curiosity._

 _"One day, I would like to be Hokage."_

 _The sat and ate in silence for a bit._

 _"I think," Miko said "that is a very good dream. You will be the best Hokage ever."_

 _He would._

 _Miko would make sure of it._

"-iko."

"Mo-"

"M-miko!"

She gasped, sitting up only to fall back down, coughing loudly. She hacked up water and blood, Hinata whimpering in the background. Her head was in Shika's lap, his hands rubbing her shaking shoulders.

"W-what?" She choked out.

"We went over the edge of a cliff. The river carried us really far."

It went without saying it hid their scent and trail too. Miko sat up, injured but alive.

"Did you guys see anybody?"

"N-no." Hinata said.

"You guys hurt?"

"No." They said.

"Here." Shika moved some berries in front of her face-one of the many species that was unique to this world. "It's safe, the Nara clan works on it with the deer. We picked a lot to eat. But we don't have any water."

As Miko ate the tangy berries, she knew their basic needs. She wasn't sure how far away they were but water was accessible. She could faintly hear the river from here. Miko had been in the process of learning the fireball jutsu. She couldn't produce one yet, but she could make a small flame. Enough to start a fire and boil water. If that failed She could always find flowing water.

To her left sat a bloodied kunai. Seeing her gaze Hinata answered her question.

"It was in your side."

Nice.

"Hinata, could you go get some water? Thanks." Hinata left and it was just her and Shikamaru. She was confused when she felt something drip on her face, until she realized Shikamaru was crying.

"I-I thought you were gonna die." He croaked.

"Shhhh...I'll get us out." She murmured.

"No. I'll get us out. You always do everything, and I need to pay you back for the shogi piece."

Miko smiled sadly and nodded, eyes closed. Flashes of making that with Akira passed in front of her mind. Eyes still closed, she reached up and felt for his face and placed it between her hands. She kissed him on the corner of his mouth.

Hinata came back with the water and she washed her wounds. Starting a small fire, she directed the smoke out to the river where it would dissipate and hopefully attract the right attention.

But at the end of the day, she was left with one conclusion.

They were lost.

In the middle of one of the biggest forests in the world.


	57. Chapter 57

Hinata noticed with her eyes.

They had stayed in the cave a little bit longer, eating berries and other things Shika found while Miko made sure the water was clean.

Someone was coming towards them. They were a little ways off, but that didn't stop them from throwing their things together and getting on a deer trail-as to leave no tracks. They couldn't be sure if they were nin from another village or what. They had stayed at the cave so long no doubt even the most inexperienced could tell someone had lived there.

They crawled into the bushes, squeezing into places only a small child could. They rolled into a gully with tall grass, shielded as it covered them but they could look through.

In the distance, birds took off from trees as someone crossed them.

Judging by Hinata's frantic look, it wasn't good.

It wasn't just somebody passing through. Was it a rescue mission or a search and destroy mission? Root infiltrated ANBU often enough where they could disguise themselves. Two agents, scouts by the look of it, landed silently in a tree on the other side of the river.

Miko started to hyperventilate, hurting her already hurt sides. None of them dared to speak.

She reached out one hand and grabbed Hinata's hand, squeezing her fingers. She wanted to reassure them one last time. She reached out to grab Shikamaru's hand only to realize it wasn't there by his side. It was up in the air, palm full of berries, trying to tempt a deer that was hesitantly steeping out of the undergrowth.

It's nose twitched and it took a few dainty steps forward, gently stopping right in front of his raised hand. Its mouth followed the berries as they descended to the forest floor, leaning down and eating them from right in between Shikamaru and Miko.

The two Root agents in the tree stooped their sweep of the area and just stared at the deer. After a few seconds they nodded to each other and jumped away, leaving them there with the deer.

Genius.

Shikamaru was a genius.

He used the berries to lure the deer out into the open. The deer, in every sense of the word, hid them. It's body hid their's with it's own as it knelt down to eat the berries and its mere presence threw them off their trail. Deer are easily startled creature and a lot of things-including three small noisy children, would have startled it into running away. So the fact that it was their eating Shikamaru's hidden berries sent a clear signal to the Root agents that they weren't in the bushed or in the area.

And so they left.

Saving all three of their lives.

The deer finished the berries and nudged along Shikamaru's side for more, but when it couldn't find any it raised it's majestic head and trotted back onto the path. Miko decided she loved deer.

Shikamaru smiled at them and Miko couldn't help herself. She threw her arms around him and peppered his face with kisses. Hinata giggled at his beet red face.

" _You're a genius!_ " She said.

They got up and brushed the dirt off of themselves. They needed to find food and water again before heading towards Konoha.


	58. Chapter 58

They walked for two more days, wading through the river as to not leave tracks or a scent.

They were getting tired and Miko could feel her health degenerate. Her sides were never looked at besides being washed and some of Shikamaru's herbs. It was getting harder to breath and if this kept up she would order the other two to leave her behind.

She already had a hard enough time opening her senses with all her energy being sapped away by her wounds.

All she sensed was wildlife and old chakra paths from ninja who traveled through here from more than a month ago. Granted, this was far away from where they had landed, but eventually, someone would figure out what they were doing and in that case, they needed to be moving as often as possible.

After the deer left, she led the way, using her abilities to make sure the area was clear. Shikamaru knew a lot about navigating forests, due to the Nara forest and Hinata periodically activated her eyes. She led the way, carrying the kunai in front of her.

But it was Miko who sensed them coming first.

At the edge of her senses and closing in rapidly.

"Run! Caves over there!" A crack that was barely enough for a small child to squeeze through. Shika went in first, Hinata second and Miko-

-Didn't go in.

"Miko!" Shikamaru yelled.

"Shut up!" Miko jammed a rock the size of her head a little ways in, almost impossible to remove from the inside and not visible from the outside and turned around.

The signatures were closing in on her, they sensed her flaring out her chakra while looking for hostiles. This was exactly why she didn't want to use her ability, dammit! It was a two way street, a doubled edged sword. It dramatically sapped her of her energy and was almost unreliable now.

But they only knew she was here, not the other two.

Trembling, Miko held the slightly dulled kunai to the main vein in her arm and pressed. A small trickle of blood dripped down her arm and she flared out again to sense them less then a hundred feet away.

50.

20.

And then they were there.

But Miko couldn't tell if they were root or not. They had the same damned masks as the root agents had, nondescript porcelain animals. They skidded to a halt in front of her, masked eyes on her hand holding the kunai dangerously close to a vital point.

"Don't move." She croaked.

They paused, the one on the left trembling as his muscles strained.

"Miko. We are here to take you back to the village. Where are the other two?" Said the man in what he must of thought was a calming voice. He stepped forward and Miko _growled,_ digging it in deeper until a small spurt of blood showered the pebbles at their feet.

" _Don't. Move."_

The one on the left was wound up like string. They trembled and their fist clenched. Miko's eyes darted around the clearing from behind a waterfall of bangs, taking in one other presence.

"How do I know?" She asked desperately." H-how do I know I can trust y-you? The other people where dressed like you and they hurt us." Her voice cracked.

Miko could tell she dropped a bomb by their surprised stillness.

The one on the left, with his hands up, slowly walked over to her until he was standing right in front of her about five feet away. He knelt down and his right hands slid slowly-as not to startle her-to his mask.

" _Clink."_ He lifted it.

"..."

"...I-Itachi-Nii?"

His face had deep eye bags and his hair was greasy and unwashed.

"Our dream is peace." He said.

Miko threw down the kunai and jumped into his arms, bawling horrendously loudly. She clutched onto him and he broke his ANBU facade even further and drew her closer to him, trembling as he was before.

Unable to form words, she pointed at the otherwise unnoticeable crack.

The ANBU operative she now recognized as Kakashi removed the stone and helped Hinata and Shikamaru out from the crack. A medic-nin hands were lit green as they scanned them.

Miko was still bawling in Itachi's arms, and she felt him lift her onto his hip like he did when she was a toddler. Still unable to speak, she pointed as Shikamaru.

"Danzo! It was Danzo and Oro-orochi- a snake man! They're gonna attack the Uchiha! They kidnapped us!"

Miko passed out.


	59. Chapter 59

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

Flashes of green passed in front of her eyes. She was dreaming.

They jumped through the forest on the trees, birds scattering from their paths. The leave clusters floated like clouds and they were like the wind. She was being carried in a warm embrace. Safe.

 _Beep. Beep. Beep._

So why didn't she feel safe?

Something was wrong.

 _Beep, beep, beep_.

"-rate picking up." A voice whispered from the clouds. Or it could have just been the leaves. Now that she thought about it, their pace didn't seem relaxed; it was hurried. What were they running from?

 _Beep beep beep_.

"-She's waking-"

"-Her injuries-"

 _Beep-Beep-Beep._

Danzo. The forest. Ororchimaru. Root.

"She's awake! Miko-chan, how do you feel?" Cried out a voice.

"Tou-san. Kaa-" She broke off with a hacking cough. She needed to know if they were safe.

"It's okay honey." Said a nurse. "Just breath-"

"Where!" She croaked, arms failing before she flinched in pain at her headache.

The room tilted as she opened her eyes. Blurry figures hovered over her like bees, buzzing around, checking her pulse. They blabbered in high frantic voices, calling for someone in sharp voices that stabbed through her.

 _Beepbeepbeep-_

"Where!"

"It's alright-"

"No!"

God where was her family! Where was Hinata and Shikamaru? Was everything she worked for destroyed?

"Your friends are fine. You, are not! Calm down before you aggravate you're wounds further!" Snapped the medic holding her down.

Miko stilled at this. Shikamaru and Hinata were her good friends. They wouldn't let her down, they would tell everyone what happened and Danzo couldn't get to them now because of their clans. Miko cursed herself for the childish thought.

She flared out her senses in panic and felt Itachi along with Kakashi and two others guarding her. That didn't tell her if the rest of her family was alive.

"My family they were gonna attack them." She gasped.

"Where are they?"

"...M-miko, are you sure you heard right?"

Miko screamed in frustration.

" _Where_!?"

"It's Fine-"

"-It's not!" She sobbed. "It's not!"

"Imouto. It's okay. It's fine everyone's fine."

Miko hiccoughed.

"D-don't let Da-danzo near the Uchiha! He's g-gonna kill us! We heard him! Nii-san _please Nii-san!"_ She begged.

The medic rose off her in shock. Looking back and forth between Miko and her brother who had appeared out of thin air. He couldn't resist.

"The Uchiha are under heavy guard. Not from Danzo's Root." He clarified.

"Where is Danzo."

"..."

"What are you not telling me? I have a right to know, more than anybody!"

"...Due to lack of evidence...Danzo will not be convicted."

Miko blinked.

" _What do you mean Danzo's not being convicted_! He was _there_ his agents were _there_ he was _working with the snake man_!" Miko snarled.

"Fine." She said curtly.

"Miko, what-"

"-..."

"Get Ino's dad in here. I'll show him."

The Sharingan swirled in her eyes.


	60. Chapter 60

Mind reading was a lot different then Miko ever expected.

Minds were not books.

They were onions. Had many layers. She hoped these layers covered the fact that she was a reincarnation. So caught up in the moment, flushed with pleasure that she could prove Danzo's guilt, she had overlooked that one tiny detail.

Itachi squeezed her hand, mistaking her sudden case of nerves to be from the mind reading-not her cover possibly being blown. Itachi had assured her their family was safe, and that was good enough for her.

For now.

Danzo had gotten away because of lack of evidence.

Miko was happy to provide some.

When Inochi walked into the room, a serious expression on his face, Miko squeezed Itachi's hand. It felt like he was already reading her mind.

"You witnessed Danzo's betrayal."

She nodded.

He exhaled and placed his hand on her forehead, partially obscuring her vision. And then she was falling. The best description was the feeling of swinging high then letting go. She tumbled through air with startling velocity and would have screamed if she wasn't suddenly standing still, bizarrely watching herself. And Shiikamaru and Hinata waiting-

-For Akira.

He breathing quicken and she jumped when a hand fell on her shoulder.

Inochi looked down at her with barely disguised pity. She supposed it made sense he cared for her, as Miko was friends with Ino and he had given therapy to her brother. The pity brought her back and she looked up from the ground, only to see Inochi staring at an approaching Akira.

It was like he was alive again.

Akira grinned and waved and Miko snatched her traitorous hand, who had wanted to wave back. He tucked a paint brush still wet at the tip behind his ear and his hair was windswept. His clothes were splattered in red paint among other less noticeable colors.

 _SCHUNK._

Miko screamed.

Inochi held her back as Akira was run through and she could not tear her eyes away. Things she hadn't noticed before suddenly seemed so obvious. The porcelain masks hiding at their flanks, the red tint in memory her eye's,

How the blood was redder then the paint.

And then she was flying again, Inochi's hand squeezing her shoulder as she cried and sobbed.

"Those were root agents." He mumbled, brow furrowed. She nodded.

And then they were in that tiny horrible cramped box again. She heard them whispering about where they were. Inochi tensed up when he heard Shikamaru crying. Her heart ached for him, but this was a memory.

And then they were blinking.

Inochi gasped.

Word for word, memory Danzo spoke. Incriminating himself. Inochi burned it into his memory.

" _Kuhkuhkuh~"_

She shivered and screamed when the fighting broke out again. Inochi hoisted her up and chased after them, barely disguising his horror as they toppled over the cliff.

Miko gasped and jumped out of bed. Inochi stood straight up and ran out of the room, carrying the evidence with him. Itachi had caught her trembling form and was rubbing her back-trying to calm her down. It had been hard going through all that again.

She closed her eyes and shook against Itachi's chest.

She was so tired.


	61. Chapter 61

Birds tweeted above her.

Miko sat with her hands folded in her lap, eyes closed, thankful finally for a moment of peace. The smell of the flowers of all shapes and sizes tickled her nose pleasantly, and the shade from the tree and the cool marble bench she sat on was refreshing in the heat of Konoha's summer.

A leaf landed next to her.

The trickling of the stream echoed in her ears and for a moment she was seized by flashbacks of tumbling into a river. For a brief moment her chest heaved with quick breaths before she calmed herself. Just a memory.

She stood up slowly before surveying the gardens. It was coming along quite nicely, the plants were flourishing and most of the greenhouses were built. Trees formed a canopy that dappled the walkway and vines crawled up the sides of the stone walls, three Gazebos, and the Institute.

She continued on and the light rushing became louder as she made her way to one of the small bridges. She stopped on top of the arch, and looked down at the smooth creek stones. The creek was diverted from the nearby Naka river, and formed two Koi ponds at various places in the garden.

She wondered how Akira was doing now. What had been his last thoughts? The utter surprise of his face didn't leave much room for interpretation.

Just a memory.

Footsteps echoed under the bridge as someone walked along. They paused behind her for a second, before turning and also placing their elbows on the the railing.

"So, you and the Nara kid, huh? " Said Suzu in a slightly horse voice.

Yeah. About that. After Inochi delivered the evidence straight to the Hokage, there was no denying it anymore. But because it would cause a huge public upheaval to know one of their village elders ordered the kidnapping of three clan kids, the official story was he contracted an illness an died in his home. The eyes in his arms would be surgically removed and handed over to the Uchiha-along with a full apology from the Hokage. They had it hung in the clan heads house and put in all Uchiha establishments.

Miko wanted to scream to the heavens that _no, she didn't want fucking eyes, she wanted her uncle,_ but there was another problem resulting from that. Very, _very,_ pissed off clan elders who threatened to spill the beans to the rest of the clan about the eyes. And if the rest of the clan found out about their stolen bloodline, side by side with the kidnapped Miko and the dead Akira, there would be chaos. They would revolt.

So in a roundabout way Danzo would have achieved his goal after all.

Would have.

In order to placate the elders and firmly root Konoha to the village, she and Shikamaru, the Uchiha and the Nara agreed to an arranged marriage.

"Me and the Nara." She agreed. It must sting for her Aunt. For her to lose her other half out of this ordeal only for Miko to gain one. Guilt almost consumed her and she swallowed heavily.

Her Aunt made a gesture with her hands like she was going to chew her nails, but aborted and ran her fingers through her hair. She lowered the hand onto Miko's clasped one.

"Miko." She flinched. Miko half expected her Aunt to yell, but somehow the soft understanding was worse.

"Miko, I don't blame you. I don't blame you."

"You should."

"What would you have done? You avenged his death and I can't than you enough for that."

Tears welled up in her eyes and her throat burned. She wanted to yell and scream her guilt but it seemed like her heart was lodged in her throat. She didn't dare open her mouth or wails would escape. She had cried enough these last three months and she didn't want to subject an obviously harrowed Suzu to more. Her aunt, that beautiful grieving woman knew her dilemma.

"Miko, you can blame yourself but no one else is. We all heard what happened in the woods. You are a hero, Miko. A _hero_." How many people have you saved?

That was... true. The clan was okay. Not great now that all this had happened, but okay.

"Miko. Life goes on." Her aunt whispered. "Look at this garden. He will never leave us."

She raised her heavy eyes from the creek and finally looked her aunt in the face. As she had predicted, her cheeks were hallow and tear tracks stained her face. Purple smudges were under her eyes like bruises and her minty hair was darkened and unwashed.

But despite all that, she was glowing.

Absolutely glowing with health and new life.

Her hand made another gesture as if to ghost along her belly before moving a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Life is also short Miko and you never know when it's going to end." She said bitterly before her tone lightened. "If you truly respected Akira, do what he did. Do what makes you happy."

H-how did she know?

Suzu gave away nothing, a ghost of her past smile on her face. Wordlessly, she offered Miko her elbow. They walked out of the gardens together, stopping to smell the roses and check of her produce. As they walked out, they went past an inscription carved into the marble, arched above their heads.

 _This garden is dedicated to Akira Uchiha, the finest artist Konoha has ever seen._

* * *

"Father, I don't want to be a ninja." Miko said.

Fugaku Uchiha sipped his tea. Miko returning was one of the best things to ever happen to him. The weeks she was gone was pure torment and she came back not the same as she was beforehand. His daughter was tough and resilant, so to see her breakdown often was heart-wrenching in a way even the worst cases on the force weren't.

"You have the Sharingan."

"Yes."

He wanted her to be safe and happy. Already she had been through so much and he was scared she wouldn't recover.

"I know you can make it to chunin, Miko. Do that and I will see to it."

Miko flung her arms around him, before retreating to work out the details of what she wanted to do. As she walked out of the room she smiled for the first time in months. Itachi regarded her with an unreadable eye. She smiled and waved.

She may not have been able to save everyone. But she saved the clan.

She had done it.

The world was full of possibilities, just waiting to be snatched.

And as the Uchiha's brand new Public Relations head, she had a lot of snatching to do.

* * *

 **And thats it. The end of Miko.**

 **It has been an honor and pleasure writing my first ever fanfic and it went farther than I ever hoped it could. You slugged it out through bad grammar and short chapters to make it here, so congratulations, reader. This one's for you.**

 **As this is my last ever chapter, I want to know over all, how did this fic effect you? What did it change about your Uchiha views? What did you relate to what did you find cool or clever, and what did you appreciate?**

 **Go all out in paragraph format if you can. This is the last so give it your all.**

 **And If you liked this, don't be too upset it's over. I have other Naruto fic's and I particularly recommend New Perspective.**

 **See you!**


	62. Epilouge

Fugaku Uchiha was proud.

He was proud of many things.

He was proud that his Daughter's first word was father.

He was proud of his eldest's skill.

He was proud Sasuke didn't inherit his trouble with expression.

He was at first surprised though, having been numbed by years of disappointments and hardships. His best friend sacrificing themselves for him had been particularity hard to watch. Then there was the suspicion from the rest of the villagers, and the constant threat of removal.

And then things changed.

He hadn't dared to get his hopes up, and he wasn't alone in that aspect either. Other clan members kept their heads down-metaphorically, of course. Uchiha don't bow their heads. But then the clan meeting came up, and he was swamped with offers of play dates from other clans. Not being able to resist the combined power of both Miko and Sasuke (And Mikoto) he agreed.

It went well. Very well.

Deciding to try his luck, he announced his plan to acquire a spot at the festival. It had been an important one-the first major festival since before the war. People were suffering from their recent losses and many hoped this would pick them and the economy back up. Fugaku hoped it would pick the Uchiha back up. As he waited for the screeners he couldn't help but worry. He saw the cold looks given to Uchiha in the streets, the judgement before they even opened their mouths and knew this was hopeless.

Then Miko started crying.

He had given up hope right then and there, but before he could cancel he was called. With Miko crying in his arm and dread settling in he walked through the door. As expected, he was met with cool, slightly condescending stares.

What was unexpected was the surprise that lit them up when they saw him gently rocking Miko back and forth.

They looked at her, then back at him in an almost comical double take. The judgmental looks melted off their faces and they seemed to be seeing him in a new light.

A Uchiha, much less the clan head, caring for their child to tenderly?!

Is what he imagined them thinking now that it was over. But at the time, he was just surprised they would listen to him. As he explained his station, Miko calmed down and grinned adorably, waving her fat arms at the screeners. Fugaku would have thought it to be suspicious if she hadn't been barely just a year old.

He got the spot and the Uchiha were flung into action. Now that the war was over they had lost a lot of revenue-as morbid at that sounded-and needed this.

People at first would not approach. He stood with a barely concealed scowl at the ring around their stand. And then Miko and Sasuke started playing out in front, in perfect view of the crowds. Maybe it was the cute babies, or the smell of free food, but the people came in.

The Hokage's arrival only helped things along.

From there he payed special attention to his daughter and noticed the keen glint she would get in her eyes, like a sharpened kunai and briefly wondered if he had another prodigy on his hands. When she took her time walking and talking he dismissed his earlier guesses. She laughed and played and charmed just about everyone she met-including the Hinata girl.

That incident was a turning point.

When Konoha's two most powerful clans are on good terms for the first time in history that turns heads. Not even mentioning the uniting factor of Konoha behind them.

And he came to the conclusion again, that this would have been impossible were it not for Miko.

He revisited his earlier theory and found that while he couldn't disprove it, he couldn't really prove it either. Miko was cunning, clever, but she lacked that lighting quick sharpness Itachi had.

But she planned.

It had taken him years to notice his youngest child and only daughter was a schemer that would make a Nara weep, but he had realized it only after Akira's funeral was said and done, and they were back safe and sound in Konoha.

Miko was incredibly intelligent, maybe not on Itachi's level but her skills with manipulation and planning surpassed even his. Her ability to connect and read emotions and influence people was something Itachi didn't possess either. The problem with Itachi was he was always seeing the bigger picture-so much so he missed the finer details. It had taken him awhile to wrap his head around the idea that the same child who threw flower petals at him and fell asleep on his shoulder had been playing him and everyone else like a Suna puppeteer.

He was sure being kidnapped wasn't part of the plan, but her ability to improvise, adapt, survive, and eliminate her enemies despite the curveball impressed him beyond all belief.

With Danzo out of the picture and Miko getting credited with leading the other two to safety the Uchiha recovered.

Slowly.

Painfully.

They healed.

If he hadn't been who he was he wouldn't have notice a gap that existed since the foundation of the village heal and disappear, only weld marks and scar tissue left over. Thoughts of Akira were with everyone and Suzu took it the apology the three clans received from the Hokage was accepted and in the Uchiha's case, long overdue. It had been somewhat controversial though, but the clan heads agreed not to reveal root was behind this-as long as the organization was immediately disbanded.

Miko had taken the Chunin exam with a boy named Sai and another named Tourne from root, trying to help them acclimate to Konoha.

Miko was the most relaxed he had ever seen her.

After achieving the rank of Chunin, she halted her ninja career and began doing social work, checking up on Suzu and the baby, running the Art Institute and gardens smoothly. He recognized her skill and now that she didn't have to hide anymore, a part of Miko that was kept locked away was set free. Most people were surprised by this, but no one complained after they saw the work she was doing.

He was happy for her, and he hoped that she realized that.

The third Hokage, in a moved that had shocked the entire village, took up Itachi as his successor. His son had proven himself time and time again, especially in the years after the kidnapping but the clan was reluctant to let their prodigy go. But the opportunity to have an Uchiha in office was too good. Of course, like all Hokage's who came from a clan, Itachi would have to take an oath saying he would act in the interests of everyone and not just the clan, and Fugaku had no doubt of just that. It would still be years before Itachi could even think of taking over the post though.

With their heir gone, the clan had turned to Sasuke.

"I would like to travel the world father. I-" He swallowed. "-I don't want to be clan head." Sasuke had said to him.

His children had been through so much and he just wanted him to be happy. Sasuke had matured in a way only the idea of losing someone close to you can do. After Miko was seemingly gone forever, he had drawn in on himself and seeing his perpetually cheerful son like that had unnerved him. He had cried over Mikos unconscious form and had hardly let her out of his sight when she left the hospital. But now graduated from the academy, he was proving himself to be a talented ninja and a promising officer.

So then the Uchiha had no clan heir. To say it had caused a stir and a buzz in the village would be an understatement.

And so, Fugaku was disappointed.

Because Miko would have made the best Clan Head the Uchiha had ever had.

Itachi was out of the question for obvious reasons, and the fact that social details that ghosted over him came naturally to Miko. Sasuke was intelligent as well but followed his emotions and tended to wander.

Miko however…

She cared, but had enough control to not let her emotions control her. For a Uchiha that was unheard of. Itachi cared to the point where he would give up anything for the twins. Miko understood there needed to be sacrifice, she had the natural qualities of a leader in the way she knew risks were impossible to avoid-but not impossible to manage. She was the defacto leader of her little group during the academy and had a silver tongue that could charm a snake.

It was a shame. If she was his firstborn, there would have been no question.

* * *

Miko sneezed.

She wiped her nose as she stacked the last box of clay on the shelf above the glazes. Clay was incredibly hard to get this far into fire country so it was a serious task that Miko trusted very few people with.

She brushed invisible dirt off her hands, wheeling in the cart and took the installed elevator up to the first floor. They had one of the only elevators in Konoha and it went all the way from the fourth to the newly renovated basement. The Institute had only grown since...since then, and they needed all the space they could get.

Miko had enjoyed it greatly at first, but now...well, doing this over and over again was getting repetitive.

"Hello Inky."

"Hi sigh." She said. Sigh was her nickname for Sai. He was standing with ink-covered hands and a stained shirt, holding a brush in his hand. After they had become chunin, Sai was looking for another place to stay. He had been deemed safe enough to leave supervision. The only problem was he had nowhere to go. Miko knew he was an artist at heart, and since she was basically the head of the institute now that...all she needed was a couple words to convince her laid-back cousins to let Sai occupy...the vacant bedroom on the fourth floor.

Ever since then Sai was in heaven. His older brother came to visit from time to time.(Since root was disbanded early he didn't have to fight) and Tourne was Shino's cousin. His control over his bugs was almost flawless and he had been welcome back into his clan. Miko sometimes saw him studying bugs in the gardens.

As a matter of fact, she wished she could be as happy as them.

Ever since she had passed the bookmark of chunin, her life had become painfully repetitive. Now that the massacre wasn't hanging over her head like an axe, her main purpose was gone. She had nothing else to do except maintain what she had already done, like the fairs and the Institute, and everyone else in the clan could easily manage that in her stead. Now that Danzo was gone, there was no excitement!

Don't get her wrong, he's a bitch and she makes a point of having the cat summons shit on his grave...but things were just boring now!

She needed to do something, be someone! Her life wasn't complete like this! Without some sort of goal in mind.

"Don't you have to meet with pineapple?" Sai asked.

Ah yes, Shikamaru. She was engaged to him and while she had no problem with Shikamaru...she had a problem giving up her Uchiha name and heritage. She had worked so hard for it, sweated, cried, and bled for it and wasn't keen on giving it up. Getting married would mean she would basically have to be a housewife and controlled by the Nara. She wasn't about that life.

"Yeah."

Shikamaru graduated alongside Sasuke, Sakura, Naruto, and the rest of the rookie nine. Miko herself had made a point of graduating early so she could do what she wanted. Tenten had graduated just a little after Miko with Lee and a smiling Neji. A smiled played on her lips as she thought of the brown bunny haired girl. Miko missed her company and how they used to throw kunai and senbon at the training grounds. Tenten had jumped Miko and cried into her shoulder when she had finally gotten out of the hospital, saying she would train three times as hard to protect her, and Miko was touched. Miko would have to catch up. Lately she had been thinking like this and she was pretty sure it was nostalgia.

Pretty sure.

"I'll finish this. You go." Sai said.

Miko left.

* * *

Fugaku inhaled.

Then exhaled.

Miko blinked from across from him, looking innocent as a kitten.

Looking like she hadn't just asked him to call off her engagement with Nara Shikamaru.

"Both me and him agreed to it, Father. He said it would be a drag getting married and he's talking to his parents right now." Miko smiled pleasantly at him.

"Let me discuss it with the clan elders." He had told her. He was almost giddy with happiness. If Miko wasn't to marry, the possibility of her becoming clan head was very real.

* * *

"So what are you going to do now?" Tenten asked.

Miko considered her for a moment, taking in her curious honey brown eyes and the shining silver senbon holding her hair up. It would make a great painting.

"Miko." Said exasperated, yet fondly.

"I'm not sure yet." She was still tossing over the proposal her father had gave her. Miko, clan head of the Uchiha. Had a nice ring to it. But would that position give her more or less freedom? It would certainly give her access to parts of the clan she had never touched before, and having the full might of the most powerful clan in the world practically made her salivate. She could do so much. But she would be further scrutinized as clan head, there would be very little she could do independently. But that was never her style anyway.

"That's why I asked you." Miko said.

Tenten hummed lowly in her throat and Miko fought the urge to place her head against her chest to feel it.

"Well, it would be cool. You could be really strong like Tsunade." Tenten said.

Miko smirked. Adorable.

"I thought you wanted to be like Tsunade."

Tenten blushed.

"Yeah, but I figured we both could."

Together. Miko liked the sound of that and told her so. Tenten's blush was too cute and Miko couldn't help herself when she pulled Tenten in her lap and kissed the corner of her mouth.

"W-we shouldn't" Tenten whispered, flushed. "The Uchiha might not like it."

"Well that's too bad. As their future clan head, they'll have to deal with it."

Tenten giggled nervously and Miko smiled up at the trees. Her father had whipped the clan elders into shape and she was sure to be met with little resistance. She didn't know what she was going to do next, but she was Miko.

Nothing and no one could stop her.

* * *

 **A Lot of people had asked for an epilogue so I decided, why not? Hopefully this clears up some of the things that have happened to Miko.**

 **If you are still confused on somethings, review and i'll respond in a bonus chapter trying to answer them all at once. But I might answer them below...**

 **And surprise!~ Miko likes girls! Are you really surprised though? Her mannerisms and the way she treats boys should have been an indicator. Yes, she did kiss Shikamaru, but that was to raise moral, in the moment, and to further attach him to her. Miko is ManipulativeTM and having someone romantically invested in her is what she wants-even if it's not reciprocated on her part. Think of how she used Naruto's crush on her to prank people.**

 **I know a lot of you really like Shika x Miko, but tell me, is an arranged marriage really something Miko would put up with? It was a political move but now that everything is stable it's entirely unnecessary. And the option of becoming clan head leads to even more power and ability on her part than a Nara.**

 **The reason why she was accepted so easily in Sasuke's and Itachi's place is because she graduated early from the academy, two years before the rookie nine and she unlocked her Sharingan at an early age. They are also in desperate need of a competent future clan head, and Miko's one of the only ones that fit's the bill. Plus she's the clan heads daughter.**

 **The reason Fugaku wanted Miko to become at least a chunin was so she would have been able to defend herself. Think kidnappings. She does have her sharingan after all.**

 **And it makes sense for Miko to be clan head in the future too, as Fugaku explains. This opens up a world of possibilities and power where Miko has the entire clan at her beck and call, even more power than she did before. Power enough to take on the akatsuki... That is very tempting to write…**

 **Keep in mind I have not actually finished shippuden and in fact have not even finished the original series. Most of my knowledge comes from narutopedia and youtube clips. Before I think about writing a sequel I'll have to catch up on hundreds of episodes.**

 **Yeah and Danco GETS WRECKED! In my head the public is informed he died of a heart condition but they really poison him. Orochimaru flees but lord third doesn't pursue.**

 **This is the longest chapter I have actually ever done for Miko. I am quite aware this entire fic was more tell than show. Whoops.**

 **I am writing a sister fic to this! Its called Paper Fans and you can find it by clicking my name! It stars Sasuke, and what would have happened if the massacre wasn't prevented. It follows him as he begins to uncover things...and wonders why somethings just don't add up...**


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